Rs 38,000 cr export boom for India as Europe's war machine runs short of shells

The figure means Indian companies sold defence equipment worth Rs 38,424 crore to foreign customers during 2025-26. It measures export value, not the number of weapons or shells shipped. The record shows India’s defence industry is reaching more international markets and responding to rising demand.

A major part of this trade involves ammunition-related products. Defence Secretary Rajesh Kumar Singh said India was exporting standard ammunition and artillery shells of various calibres to European countries in significant quantities. India now supplies more than 80 markets, while registered exporters have increased from 128 to 145.

The figure also includes exports from both state-owned and private manufacturers. DPSUs contributed Rs 21,071 crore, while private companies contributed Rs 17,353 crore. Continued growth will depend on reliable materials, stronger supply chains, modern fuze technology, and the ability to deliver consistent quality at scale.

India’s defence exports rose from Rs 23,622 crore to Rs 38,424 crore between the previous year and 2025-26. That was a 62.66% increase. The jump reflects stronger overseas demand and India’s expanding ability to manufacture and export defence products.

State-owned Defence Public Sector Undertakings led the increase. DPSU exports surged 151% and reached Rs 21,071 crore, equal to 54.84% of the total. Private companies exported Rs 17,353 crore, accounting for the remaining share and recording 14% growth.

This was significant because state-owned manufacturers moved ahead of private firms in the comparison. The defence ministry linked the broader expansion partly to a revamped online portal and a simpler standard operating procedure for export authorisations. India’s exporter base also grew from 128 registered exporters to 145.

European countries suddenly needed large quantities of ammunition because they had supplied artillery shells to Ukraine for years. Those deliveries reduced their own military inventories. Rebuilding the stockpiles became urgent as governments sought to restore readiness and maintain adequate reserves.

The problem was not simply a lack of orders. European defence manufacturers struggled to ramp up production quickly enough to meet the sharp increase in demand. The article highlights a gap between Europe’s need for shells and the speed at which its industrial base could produce them.

That shortage pushed European governments to look beyond domestic factories. Indian manufacturers became beneficiaries because they could produce ammunition at competitive prices. The resulting procurement drive helped raise India’s exports, especially to European countries seeking standard ammunition and artillery shells of several calibres.

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine sharply increased Europe’s need to replace ammunition sent to Ukraine. Indian companies shipped at least $872 million worth of ammunition-related products to Europe in the four years after the invasion, compared with $49.2 million in the preceding four years. That was an increase of more than 1,600%.

The ReArm Europe, or Readiness 2030, initiative strengthened this trend. The European Union initiative is an €800-billion push to increase defence spending, improve military capabilities, and expand Europe’s defence-industrial base. It gave the procurement drive additional momentum.

India also sought a larger role in European programmes through joint ventures with local companies. Defence Secretary Rajesh Kumar Singh said India had become the third-largest arms exporter to Europe, while the article clarifies that this claim concerns specific ammunition categories, not major conventional weapons overall.

The article does not identify which one of the seven named destinations bought the most. It names the Czech Republic, Spain, Slovenia, Romania, Bulgaria, Italy, and the United Kingdom. Separately, it says nearly three-quarters of India’s exports went to 13 countries in Central and Eastern Europe.

In those Central and Eastern European markets, India rose from 28th place to the second-largest foreign supplier of the specified ammunition categories, behind South Korea. This ranking applies to those categories and countries. It does not describe India as a leading supplier of Europe’s major conventional weapons.

For the seven listed destinations together, exports increased from $2.96 million in 2020-21 to $5.92 million in 2021-22. That is a rise of $2.96 million, or 100%. The excerpt ends before providing later figures, so it does not support a longer trend for this seven-country group.

European buyers turned to India because their own defence manufacturers struggled to meet the sudden surge in ammunition demand. Years of supplying Ukraine had depleted national stockpiles, but domestic production could not be increased quickly enough. Imported ammunition therefore became a practical way to rebuild supplies.

India’s manufacturers were able to produce ammunition at competitive prices. They also supplied standard ammunition and artillery shells of various calibres in significant quantities. This combination of available products and cost competitiveness helped Indian companies win more European business after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

The shift also fits Europe’s changing supply relationships. Defence Secretary Rajesh Kumar Singh pointed to India’s gradual diversification away from Russia as its principal defence supplier. India wants to participate more directly through joint ventures with European companies, which could deepen cooperation if procurement programmes continue expanding.

An artillery shell is ammunition fired from an artillery weapon. A propellant is the energetic material that generates the force needed to launch it. A fuze is the component that initiates or controls the shell’s functioning. These definitions use established technical knowledge; the article focuses on why their quality matters.

The article says ammunition must deliver its designated terminal effect reliably. That depends on raw-material quality, indigenous content, critical components, and the ability to design and manufacture modern fuzes. Delays in propellant production affected ammunition-filling factories and supplies of specialised chemicals, energetic materials, electronic components, and high-grade metals.

Quality cannot be treated as a final inspection alone. Process consistency, laboratory testing, and timely delivery are integral to production. BEL is working on fuzes, and around 91% indigenisation has been achieved for many ammunition variants. Critical technologies, however, still need to be brought together more fully.