Defence spending, foreign buys decline

India's defence spend has declined as a share of GDP and government expenditure, alongside a parallel drop in foreign acquisitions in capital defence purchases

India’s defence spending, as a percentage of the GDP has decreased from 2.25 per cent in 2014-15 to 1.91 per cent in 2024-2025. Along with this, there has also been a drop in the share of foreign procurement in capital defence purchases, especially from 2018-19 onwards, with share of foreign procurement being at approximately 49 per cent in 2018-19 declining by more than half at 12.4 per cent in the previous financial year uptil December 2024.