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New Delhi: Minister of State for Defence Sanjay Seth, speaking at the ICC Global Business Summit 2026 on September 19, called for India to move beyond “Make in India” towards “Make for the World”, positioning design, innovation, manufacturing scale and quality as the foundations of the country's next phase of defence-industrial growth.
Addressing a session on “Building For The World: India's Next Leap In Defence & Industrial Manufacturing”, Seth said India's manufacturing journey had progressed from Make in India to Aatmanirbhar Bharat and now needed to advance towards global-scale production and exports.
He highlighted the transformation in India's industrial and technology ecosystem, including electronics production, which he said had grown from around ₹1.9 lakh crore in 2014-15 to approximately ₹12 lakh crore today. He also pointed to India's expanding start-up ecosystem, with more than 2.23 lakh DPIIT-recognised start-ups and over 118 unicorns.
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Seth linked this transformation to the Sapt Dhara framework outlined by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, which identifies manufacturing, agriculture and food production, technology and innovation, Gati Shakti, Raksha Shakti, the green and blue economy, and soft power as interconnected drivers of India's next phase of development.
On defence specifically, Seth said the sector should no longer be viewed only through the lens of national security. “Defence is technology. Defence is manufacturing. Defence is innovation. Defence is skilled employment. Defence is industrial capability,” he said.
He cited the growth of India's defence production from approximately ₹43,746 crore in 2013-14 to a record ₹1.78 lakh crore in FY 2025-26. Defence exports have also risen from around ₹686 crore to ₹38,424 crore, with Indian defence products now reaching more than 80 countries, according to figures presented by the minister.
Seth said nearly 65% of defence equipment is now produced domestically, while thousands of items have been indigenised. India has set a target of ₹3 lakh crore in annual defence production and ₹50,000 crore in defence exports by 2029.
The minister also called for closer integration between youth, MSMEs, start-ups and large industry across the complete innovation pipeline—from ideas and prototypes to testing, validation, manufacturing, scaling and exports. He urged MSMEs to evolve from component vendors into technology partners and start-ups to develop the ability to manufacture and scale their innovations.
For India's defence industry, this represents a shift from import substitution towards global competitiveness. Developing technologies domestically is only the first step; the ability to manufacture them at scale, maintain consistent quality and deliver reliably will determine whether Indian systems can compete in international markets.
Sanjay Seth identified cost, quality, technology, delivery, trust and scale as six factors that would determine India's attractiveness as a global industrial partner. He argued that the country's objective should be to become more than another defence supplier and instead emerge as a trusted partner for international customers and companies.
The international dimension was reinforced by Italy's Ambassador to India and Nepal Antonio Bartoli, who said India and Italy's deepening defence-industrial relationship was taking place amid geopolitical tensions and disrupted global supply chains. He described India as an industrial partner for co-design, co-development and co-production, and indicated Italy's openness to substantial technology transfer.
The remarks point to a broader opportunity for India as countries seek to diversify defence supply chains and establish more resilient manufacturing partnerships. If Indian industry can combine indigenous technology with competitive costs, quality and reliable production, the country's expanding defence manufacturing base could increasingly serve both domestic requirements and international markets.
For New Delhi, the next phase of the defence-industrial strategy is therefore not simply about making more equipment in India. It is about developing the technological depth, manufacturing scale and international partnerships needed to design in India, produce in India and increasingly make for the world.
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