INDIAN NAVY AND AATMANIRBHAR BHARAT
1. The Indian Navy is pursuing a long-term transformation under Vision 2047 to become a fully indigenous, technology-driven maritime force aligned with Aatmanirbhar Bharat objectives.
2. Indigenisation is treated as essential for operational autonomy, crisis-time supply security, and reduced dependence on foreign military platforms, systems, and spare-part chains.
3. India’s expanding maritime role in the Indian Ocean Region includes humanitarian assistance, disaster relief, anti-piracy operations, and broader sea-lane security responsibilities.
4. India’s maritime geography includes a coastline of about 11,098 kilometres and an Exclusive Economic Zone of nearly 2.4 million square kilometres.
5. The Indo-Pacific carries nearly 50 percent of global trade and about 40 percent of global oil transit, making maritime security central to India’s strategic planning.
6. Since 2014, more than 40 indigenous warships and submarines have been inducted into naval service, reflecting sustained growth in domestic shipbuilding capability.
7. In the last decade, nearly 67 percent of the Navy’s capital procurement has come from Indian industry, indicating rising domestic industrial participation in defence production.
8. Machinery indigenisation levels in the Navy are estimated at about 90 percent in Float systems, 60 percent in Move systems, and 50 percent in Fight systems.
9. The Navy’s budget increased from ₹49,623 crore in 2020–21 to about ₹1.03 lakh crore in 2025–26, showing major growth in maritime modernisation spending.
10. Around 51 major warships are currently under construction in India with an estimated value of roughly ₹90,000 crore, highlighting the scale of naval self-reliance efforts.
11. INS Vikrant, India’s first indigenous aircraft carrier, has about 76 percent indigenous content and is one of the most important symbols of naval indigenisation.
12. Major indigenous shipbuilding programmes include Project 15B Visakhapatnam-class destroyers and Project 17A Nilgiri-class stealth frigates with advanced sensors and weapons.
13. Project-75 has delivered Kalvari-class submarines, while Defence Research and Development Organisation has developed an indigenous Air Independent Propulsion system for improved underwater endurance.
14. Indigenous naval weapons and sensors include BrahMos, VL-SRSAM, Varunastra, Maareech, ALWT, MIGM, HUMSA NG, ABHAY, ALTAS, and electronic warfare systems such as Shakti and Sangraha.
15. Policy support for naval indigenisation includes INIP 2015–2030, NIIO, SPRINT, iDEX, SRIJAN Portal, and Positive Indigenisation Lists covering more than 3,000 defence items.
Must Know Terms :
1. Vision 2047
Vision 2047 is the long-term transformation framework under which the Indian Navy aims to become a fully indigenous, technologically advanced maritime force. It aligns naval modernisation with Aatmanirbhar Bharat and focuses on innovation, indigenisation, and integration of advanced systems. The framework links shipbuilding, weapons, underwater capability, aviation, and industrial ecosystems with India’s wider strategic role in the Indo-Pacific.
2. INIP
Indigenisation Plan 2015–2030 (INIP) is the Navy’s roadmap for building domestic capability across Float, Move, and Fight categories. It provides a structured framework for reducing foreign dependence in platforms, propulsion-related systems, weapons, electronics, and associated machinery. INIP is important because it converts indigenisation from a slogan into a measurable planning approach tied to procurement, production, and capability development.
3. NIIO
Naval Innovation and Indigenisation Organisation (NIIO), launched in 2020, is the Navy’s institutional innovation platform linking the armed forces with startups, academia, and industry. It promotes indigenous problem-solving, technology development, and accelerated defence innovation. NIIO is significant because it creates an ecosystem where operational requirements can be matched with domestic research and industrial capability for future naval applications.
4. SPRINT
SPRINT is a naval innovation initiative aimed at inducting 75 indigenous technologies into service. It works as a focused mission under the innovation ecosystem to accelerate adoption of new solutions from domestic developers. SPRINT is important because it translates innovation goals into time-bound technology induction, helping the Navy move from dependence on imports toward field-level use of Indian-designed systems.
5. Project 75
Project 75 is India’s submarine acquisition and construction programme under which Kalvari-class submarines have been inducted to strengthen underwater warfare capability. The project is important because it deepens indigenous submarine-building experience and supports long-term undersea combat readiness. Its relevance has further increased with the development of indigenous Air Independent Propulsion systems and related sonar and underwater warfare technologies.
6. SRIJAN Portal
SRIJAN Portal is a defence indigenisation platform created to identify imported items that can be replaced through domestic production. In the broader defence framework, it works with Positive Indigenisation Lists to expand Indian manufacturing participation. Its importance lies in giving industry visibility into procurement opportunities and helping convert import substitution into an organised, transparent, and scalable national defence production effort.
MCQ:
1. The primary objective of the Indian Navy’s Vision 2047 is to:
(a) Expand foreign procurement of naval platforms
(b) Achieve complete technological isolation from allies
(c) Maintain only coastal security operations
(d) Become a fully indigenous and technologically advanced maritime force
2. The Indian Naval Indigenisation Plan (INIP) 2015–2030 focuses on indigenisation under which three functional categories?
(a) Attack, Defence, Logistics
(b) Air, Sea, Space
(c) Float, Move and Fight
(d) Surface, Sub-surface and Air
3. India is referred to as the “first responder” in the Indian Ocean Region mainly because:
(a) It controls the Strait of Malacca
(b) It conducts frequent humanitarian and disaster relief operations
(c) It owns maximum merchant ships
(d) It hosts most naval exercises
4. Approximately what percentage of India’s capital procurement for the Navy over the last decade has been from Indian industry?
(a) 35%
(b) 50%
(c) 67%
(d) 90%
5. Which one of the following best reflects India’s maritime economic dependence?
(a) 90% of India’s population lives in coastal towns
(b) 90% of India’s trade and 80% of freight is sea-based
(c) 50% of India’s oil is mined offshore
(d) 75% of GDP comes from ports
6. INS Vikrant is significant because:
(a) It is India’s first nuclear-powered submarine
(b) It is India’s first indigenous aircraft carrier
(c) It is India’s longest-serving warship
(d) It is India’s first stealth destroyer
7. Project 17A is associated with:
(a) Aircraft carriers
(b) Submarine development
(c) Stealth frigates
(d) Missile testing facility
8. The Kalvari class submarines were developed under:
(a) Project 15B
(b) Project 17
(c) Project 75
(d) Project 15A
9. Which missile system was inducted by the Indian Navy in March 2025?
(a) Barak-8
(b) Agni-V
(c) VL-SRSAM
(d) Akash-NG
10. Which indigenous torpedo defence system protects Indian naval vessels against enemy torpedoes?
(a) Varunastra
(b) Shakti
(c) Maareech
(d) ALTAS
11. The Navy’s budget crossed ₹1 lakh crore in:
(a) 2020–21
(b) 2022–23
(c) 2023–24
(d) 2025–26
12. The Naval Innovation and Indigenisation Organisation (NIIO) was established in:
(a) 2018
(b) 2019
(c) 2020
(d) 2022
13. Under the SPRINT initiative, the Navy aims to induct:
(a) 50 new platforms
(b) 60 foreign systems
(c) 75 indigenous technologies
(d) 100 private shipyards
14. The Warship-grade steel used for Indian warships was jointly developed by:
(a) DRDO and HAL
(b) DRDO, SAIL and Indian Navy
(c) BHEL and ISRO
(d) L&T and BEL
15. Which statement best describes the Indian Navy’s transformation?
(a) From Coastal Navy to International Navy
(b) From Merchant Navy to Combat Navy
(c) From Buyer’s Navy to Builder’s Navy
(d) From Allied Navy to Neutral Navy
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