The next thing that must change is the default assumption that Indian private industry won't make the cut. mPhibir and others who have spent their own money on R&D will only be encouraged to do more of it if they see a return.
To that end, the MoD/ArmedForces must conduct a quick, fair and transparent evaluation to all that respond to the baseline requirement -- and assuming it is met, favor the domestic option.
Since Indians love the French so much - learn from them. There was no geopolitical jizzya, no L1 nonsense, etc-- pure AtmanirbharFrance when it came to Pinakas.
The government is pushing defence exports for a reason. Realistically, not every product made by every Indian company is going to be inducted by the Indian armed forces, whether we like it or not. The military only has a limited number of operational requirements, budgets, logistics chains, and standardisation goals to fulfill.
A system being indigenous does not automatically guarantee procurement. The forces evaluate whether they actually need that category of equipment, whether it offers a meaningful advantage over existing systems, and whether introducing it would complicate training, maintenance, ammunition supply, or overall logistics.
Take assault rifles as an example. Even if companies like SSS Defence develop multiple new AR platforms, the Indian Army won't induct those right now because the AK-203 program already exists as the primary standardisation path. Once a military commits to a platform at scale, switching again becomes expensive and operationally inefficient unless the newer system offers a major leap in capability in one area or another.
That’s exactly why exports matter. Exports allow companies to survive, scale production, recover R&D costs, improve products through real-world feedback, and build manufacturing ecosystems even when domestic orders are limited. Many successful global defence companies became export-oriented long before their home militaries adopted large numbers of their systems.
A healthy defence industry cannot depend only on one customer even if that customer is its own military. Exports create volume, competition, technological maturity, and financial sustainability. In many cases, export success can eventually strengthen a product’s chances of future domestic induction as well when new requirements emerges.
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