New Delhi: Kalyani Strategic Systems Limited (KSSL), the defence arm of Bharat Forge, has signed a Strategic Alliance Agreement with French defence major Thales to establish an advanced industrial capability for 70-mm rocket systems in India.
The partnership will cover both unguided and laser-guided variants, combining Thales' rocket technology with KSSL's manufacturing, system-integration and testing capabilities. The first fully assembled rocket produced in India is targeted for early 2027.
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The 70-mm systems are already used by the Indian Armed Forces and can be deployed from air, land and naval platforms. They can also be employed against drone threats, giving the system relevance in an increasingly drone-heavy battlefield.
Thales will contribute its established rocket technology and global market reach, while KSSL will use its Indian manufacturing and testing infrastructure. The alliance is intended to create an indigenous production capability capable of supporting both Indian requirements and international markets.
This fits into India's broader defence-industrial strategy of using international partnerships to bring advanced technologies into the country while gradually building domestic manufacturing and supply-chain capabilities.
The partnership also adds another example of the growing role of India's private defence sector in absorbing foreign technology, industrialising systems locally and potentially turning India into an export base.
Modern battlefields are increasingly characterised by drones, loitering munitions and other low-cost aerial threats. A multi-platform rocket system that can be adapted for different missions could provide militaries with another layer of relatively flexible firepower.
Thales said its 70-mm rocket solutions are used by 70 armed forces across 55 countries, giving the Indian production programme an existing international user base and potential export ecosystem.
For India, the strategic opportunity is therefore two-fold: strengthen domestic availability of an already operational capability while building the industrial capacity to manufacture and potentially export it.
The bigger shift is from “Made in India” to “Made in India for the World” — using global defence technology as a bridge towards indigenous production and exports.
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