India has announced a package of policy initiatives aimed at bringing smaller companies and start-ups deeper into the country’s defence research, development and manufacturing ecosystem. The measures were unveiled by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh at VIMARSH 2026, a Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO)-industry synergy meet held in New Delhi on September 15. The event brought together more than 250 defence industry leaders, officials, military representatives and DRDO scientists.
A central element of the package is a framework designed to reduce the technical and financial barriers that often prevent smaller companies from entering defence programmes. Under the initiative, micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) and deep-tech start-ups will receive access to direct funding, incubation support and dedicated DRDO testing facilities.
For young companies, testing and certification can be among the most expensive stages of defence development. Access to government laboratories and technical infrastructure could help reduce development timelines and give firms a clearer path from prototype to procurement.
The government also introduced a standardised and secure system for sharing DRDO-developed software source codes with licensed industries. The framework is intended to support software-defined defence capabilities, improve maintenance and make it easier to manage technological obsolescence.
Software is becoming increasingly important across military platforms, including aircraft, missiles, naval systems, sensors and command networks. Allowing authorised manufacturers to work with source code could enable faster upgrades and reduce dependence on externally supplied software during the operational life of a system.
During the event, nine Licensing Agreements for Transfer of Technology were handed over to 13 manufacturing partners. The agreements are intended to enable commercial production of defence systems developed by DRDO. The announcement did not disclose the full technical details of every licensed system, but described them as state-of-the-art equipment for industrial production.
DRDO also exchanged Memorandums of Understanding (MoUs) with the Society of Indian Defence Manufacturers and Laghu Udyog Bharati. The partnerships are expected to expand outreach to industry and encourage wider participation, including from manufacturing companies outside India’s large industrial groups.
Another agreement was signed with the Quality Council of India for the second version of the System for Advance Manufacturing Assessment and Rating, known as SAMAR 2.0. The system will assess the manufacturing maturity of domestic defence enterprises, potentially helping identify capability gaps and establish common benchmarks for suppliers.
Singh said defence cooperation should extend beyond production to cover research, design, testing, certification and manufacturing. The objective, he said, is to transform India into a global defence-manufacturing hub by combining DRDO’s technology base, industry’s production capacity and start-ups’ speed and flexibility.
The policy push is linked to India’s broader self-reliance programme. Recent government initiatives have included Positive Indigenisation Lists, the Make in India campaign, the Innovations for Defence Excellence programme and the ADITI technology-development initiative. The government has also earmarked 25% of the defence research and development budget for the private sector.
The minister identified artificial intelligence, quantum computing, hypersonic systems, directed energy, drones and cybersecurity as priority areas for private-sector innovation. These technologies require rapid experimentation and specialised expertise, areas where smaller firms may be able to move faster than large, conventional contractors.
According to Defence Secretary and DRDO Chairman Rajesh Kumar Singh, more than 2,300 technology transfers have so far been provided to over 1,100 industries. DRDO has also made technologies related to approximately 50 missiles available to industry, creating opportunities for additional production lines and supplier networks.
The VIMARSH discussions also examined ways to accelerate technology absorption, improve development-and-production partnerships and move indigenous systems into military service more quickly. The government’s challenge now will be to convert the new frameworks into predictable funding, faster approvals and actual contracts.
If implemented effectively, the initiatives could widen India’s defence-industrial base, strengthen domestic supply chains and give start-ups a more meaningful role in national security production. They also signal a shift from a buyer-seller relationship toward a collaborative technology ecosystem in which private companies participate from research through deployment.
