Pakistan Hikes Defence Budget By 20% To Fix Operation Sindoor Damage

Pakistan has announced a significant 20% increase in its defence spending for the fiscal year 2025-26, raising the allocation to 2.55 trillion Pakistani rupees (approximately $9 billion) compared to 2.12 trillion rupees ($7.45 billion) in the outgoing year.
This sharp rise in military expenditure comes in the wake of recent hostilities with India, particularly following the Indian military’s Operation Sindoor, which exposed vulnerabilities in Pakistan’s defence preparedness. Despite this increase in defence spending, Pakistan has reduced its overall federal budget by 7% to 17.57 trillion rupees ($62 billion), reflecting significant fiscal constraints.
The official defence budget does not include military pensions, which are substantial. For the outgoing year, an additional 563 billion rupees ($1.99 billion) was allocated for military pensions, and for FY26, this figure rises to 742 billion rupees ($2.63 billion), bringing Pakistan’s total military-related expenditure to approximately $11.67 billion. Furthermore, 704 billion rupees ($2.5 billion) is earmarked for equipment and other physical assets.
In contrast, India’s defence budget for 2025-26 is set at $78.7 billion, marking a 9.5% increase from the previous year and making it nearly nine times larger than Pakistan’s official defence allocation. India’s budget includes $21 billion for equipment and covers military pensions as well. The Indian government has indicated its intention to further raise defence spending in response to recent conflicts and to support its growing indigenous defence industry.
The recent escalation in military budgets on both sides follows a period of heightened tensions triggered by a terror attack in Jammu and Kashmir’s Pahalgam, which India attributed to Pakistan-based groups.
India’s military response, Operation Sindoor, involved the use of advanced indigenous weaponry such as BrahMos cruise missiles, Akash air defence systems, and D4 anti-drone systems, demonstrating India’s progress in defence self-reliance. Prime Minister Narendra Modi highlighted the credibility of “Made-in-India” weapons during this operation, signalling a shift towards greater domestic production, although India remains the world’s second-largest arms importer, with Russia, France, Israel, and the US as key suppliers.
Pakistan’s decision to prioritize defence spending comes amid economic challenges, including slow growth (projected at 2.7% for the current year), IMF oversight, and cuts to development and social sector budgets. The government faces the dual challenge of maintaining security in a volatile region while managing fiscal pressures and fulfilling IMF requirements.
Pakistan’s steep increase in defence spending underscores the strategic and security pressures following recent confrontations with India, but the country’s military budget remains dwarfed by India’s, reflecting a significant imbalance in conventional capabilities in South Asia.
Agencies
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