A Chinese general has publicly dismissed India’s ambition to achieve full defence self-reliance, asserting that New Delhi will never be able to manufacture all its own weapons.

At a strategic forum in Beijing, PLA Equipment Development Department Deputy Director General Wei Chang stated that India will remain dependent on foreign suppliers for critical components, despite measurable progress over the past two decades.

Wei Chang’s remarks came during a high-level discussion on regional military modernisation, where he highlighted India’s continued reliance on imported jet engines, artillery barrels, and precision guidance systems. He specifically pointed to the TEJAS MK-3 fighter aircraft and the Arjun tank as examples of platforms that still depend on foreign-origin subsystems for essential functionality.

The general’s assertion emerges against a backdrop of intensifying strategic competition between India and China, where building indigenous defence capability has become central to New Delhi’s security agenda. By casting doubt on India’s industrial depth, Beijing is signalling scepticism over New Delhi’s ability to shift the regional military balance in its favour.

Wei contrasted India’s defence import share in 2026, which stands at approximately 45 per cent, with the 70 per cent import dependency recorded in 2006. While acknowledging this quantitative improvement, he argued that critical technological gaps remain in key areas that prevent true self-sufficiency.

The timing of Wei’s comments carries symbolic weight, as they coincide with the 20th anniversary of India’s Defence Procurement Procedure introduced in 2006. This milestone has become a reference point for evaluating the progress of India’s military modernisation journey and the effectiveness of its indigenous manufacturing initiatives.

India’s recent defence achievements have drawn particular scrutiny following Wei’s remarks. The country recently conducted a series of significant missile and engine tests, including the second flight test of a long-range hypersonic anti-ship missile with a strike range exceeding 1,500 kilometres and speeds reaching Mach 10.

Platform Date Type Key Capability Strategic Significance
LR-AShM Around 1-May-2026 Long-range anti-ship missile Range up to 1,500 km; speed up to ten times that of sound; quasi-ballistic glide Enhances naval strike capability; difficult to intercept; third development trial brings closer to induction
TARA 7-May-2026 Precision-guided bomb kit Converts unguided bombs into glide weapons with extended range and onboard guidance Reduces cost and foreign dependency; improves airstrike accuracy; first indigenous glide weapon system
Agni With MIRV 8-May-2026 Ballistic missile with MIRV Carries multiple warheads targeted at different points across a large area Increases strategic deterrence; complicates interception; enhances land-based nuclear capability
Scramjet Engine 9-May-2026 Hypersonic engine test Sustains flight above Mach 5 within atmosphere; tests materials, coatings, and cooling for hypersonic speeds Enables next-generation hypersonic weapons; gateway technology for powered hypersonic cruise missiles
C-295 Aircraft 2026 (Pre-Flight Test) Medium tactical transport aircraft Carries up to 70 troops, 48 paratroopers, or 24 medical stretchers; short take-off and landing; powered by two Pratt & Whitney PW127G turboprop engines Strengthens indigenous aerospace manufacturing; replaces ageing Avro-748 fleet; features indigenous electronic warfare suite

The hypersonic anti-ship missile, developed by the Defence Research and Development Organisation, was tested off the Odisha coast and is designed to extend India’s maritime defensive reach into deep ocean regions. This capability is expected to raise concerns for India’s rivals, including China and Pakistan.

In another major development, India carried out the maiden flight trial of the Tactical Advanced Range Augmentation system, an indigenously developed glide-bomb kit that converts conventional unguided bombs into long-range precision weapons. The DRDO and Indian Air Force conducted the test using a Jaguar strike aircraft as the launch platform off the Odisha coast.

The country also successfully tested an advanced Agni missile equipped with Multiple Independently Targetable Re-entry Vehicle capability from Dr APJ Abdul Kalam Island off the Odisha coast on 8 May 2026. This test, conducted under Mission Divyastra, marked India’s second known MIRV test after the earlier launch in March 2024, joining an exclusive club of nations including the US, Russia, China, France, and the UK.

In parallel with these missile tests, India achieved a historic aviation milestone as the first domestically assembled Airbus C-295 transport aircraft rolled out of the Tata Advanced Systems Limited facility in Vadodara, Gujarat. This marks the first time a private Indian company has assembled a military aircraft on domestic soil, breaking the long-standing state monopoly in defence aviation.

The C-295 project forms part of a ₹21,935 crore contract finalised between the Government of India and Airbus Defence and Space in 2021. While the first 16 aircraft were delivered directly from Spain in fly-away condition, the remaining 40 are being manufactured entirely in India through the Tata-Airbus partnership under the Make in India programme.

Since 2006, India has launched several flagship indigenous defence projects, including the Kaveri jet engine programme, the Advanced Towed Artillery Gun System howitzer, and the Zorawar light tank. The Kaveri engine programme has progressed significantly, with over 140 hours of cumulative testing completed and certification expected by 2026 for the dry variant destined for the Ghatak unmanned combat air vehicle.

The ATAGS howitzer, a 155mm x 52mm calibre artillery gun developed by DRDO in collaboration with Tata Advanced Systems Limited and Bharat Forge Limited, has passed all necessary trials and is expected to see confirmation of an order for 307 units. The system features over 80 per cent indigenous content and achieves a firing range of 48 kilometres.

The Zorawar light tank, co-developed by DRDO and Larsen & Toubro, represents India’s fastest product development by DRDO. The Indian Army is scheduled to begin user trials of the indigenous light tank across diverse terrains in early 2026, confirming DRDO Chief’s earlier statements.

Despite these achievements, gaps persist in critical technological areas. India does not yet field an indigenous engine on operational fighter jets, remaining dependent on foreign suppliers for jet engines that power platforms like the TEJAS fighter aircraft. The Air Force has so far depended largely on foreign-origin systems for precision strike capabilities, though the TARA kit represents a significant step toward indigenisation.

A notable setback occurred in 2024 when India encountered a rocket fuse issue that prompted emergency foreign purchases. The Indian Army subsequently inked a ₹293 crore emergency procurement deal with NIBE Limited, with Israeli collaboration, for long-range rocket launchers, highlighting the continued vulnerability created by technological dependencies.

Wei Chang’s comments coincided with the rollout of the locally assembled C-295, underscoring the contrast between visible manufacturing progress and underlying technological reliance. External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar had earlier indicated that the first made-in India C295 would roll out before September 2026, and the May 2026 rollout came ahead of this timeline.

The debate over India’s defence self-reliance milestones continues to shape strategic discourse. While quantitative progress is evident in the reduction of import dependency from 70 per cent to 45 per cent over two decades, qualitative dependence on imported subsystems for certain platforms remains a challenge.

DRDO conducted a successful ground test of a full-scale actively cooled long-duration scramjet engine for the hypersonic missile programme in January 2026. The engine operated for over 1,200 seconds, marking a decisive moment in the development of indigenous hypersonic cruise missiles and foundational success for India’s Hypersonic Cruise Missile Development Program.

Raksha Mantri Rajnath Singh visited DRDO’s Gas Turbine Research Establishment in Bengaluru in February 2026, where he witnessed the full afterburner engine test of the Kaveri engine and reviewed ongoing projects relating to indigenous military gas turbine engine development. This visit underscored the government’s commitment to achieving self-reliance in critical propulsion technologies.

The statement’s timing on the 20th anniversary of the Defence Procurement Procedure gives it symbolic weight in the broader narrative of military modernisation. The DPP-2006 introduced significant reforms to India’s defence procurement landscape, establishing frameworks that have since evolved into the current Defence Acquisition Procedure.

Wei’s remarks emerge amid intensified India-China strategic competition, where building indigenous defence capability is central to New Delhi’s security agenda. Beijing’s scepticism over India’s ability to shift the regional balance reflects concerns about New Delhi’s growing military capabilities and strategic autonomy.

The contrast between quantitative progress and qualitative dependence continues to shape the debate over India’s strategic autonomy. While India has demonstrated growth in manufacturing and strategic technology through recent achievements, questions remain over reliance on imported subsystems for certain platforms, particularly in propulsion, precision electronics, and advanced materials.

Curated By IDN