India’s military spending of $76.6 billion ranked third highest in the world. This was up by 0.9 per cent from 2020 and by 33 per cent from 2012. In a push to strengthen the indigenous arms industry, 64 per cent of capital outlays in the military budget of 2021 were earmarked for acquisitions of domestically produced arms.
The total number of pensioners in Defence Services as on 1st April, 2022 is 35,21,876. Actual Estimates of pension payout from 2012 to 2022 is stated below:-
(Amount in crores)
| Year | Defence Pensions (Actual Expenditure) |
| 2012-13 | 43,367.71 |
| 2013-14 | 45,499.54 |
| 2014-15 | 60,449.75 |
| 2015-16 | 60,237.60 |
| 2016-17 | 87,825.80 |
| 2017-18 | 91,999.58 |
| 2018-19 | 1,01,774.61 |
| 2019-20 | 1,17,810.24 |
| 2020-21 | 1,28,065.77 |
| 2021-22 | 1,16,799.85 |
Establishment Expenditure includes all the establishment related expenditure viz. salaries, medical expenses, wages, overtime allowances, foreign travel expenses, domestic travel expenses, office expenses, materials and supplies, publications, advertising and publicity, training, other administrative expenses, POL, cost of ration, clothing and tentage, professional services, rent rates and taxes, royalty, pensionary charges, rewards and minor works, motor vehicles, information technology etc. The establishment expenditure includes both salary and non-salary segments.
Also Read: Top 10 Countries In World Military Expenditure 2021 [Complete Report]
Details of Total expenditure incurred on Salary, Non-Salary (including Defence Stores Procurement) and Pensions of Defence personnel for the last five years are as under: –
(Rs in crore)
| Year | Total Expenditure on Salary | Total Expenditure on Non-Salary | Total Expenditure on Defence Pensions |
| 2017-18 | 1,34,354.90 | 47,766.54 | 91,999.58 |
| 2018-19 | 1,41,508.00 | 50,951.59 | 1,01,774.61 |
| 2019-20 | 1,47,972.55 | 59,599.60 | 1,17,810.24 |
| 2020-21 | 1,45,884.74 | 59,855.17 | 1,28,065.77 |
| 2021-22* | 1,57,893.39 | 70,668.90 | 1,16,799.85 |
*Provisional Figures
Details of budget provided to Ministry of Defence (All four Grants) in Budget Estimates (BE) from 2014-15 to 2022-23 are tabulated below: –
(Rs. in crore)
| Financial Year | BE Allocation |
| 2014-15 | 2,85,202.87 |
| 2015-16 | 3,10,079.60 |
| 2016-17 | 3,40,921.98 |
| 2017-18 | 3,59,854.12 |
| 2018-19 | 4,04,364.71 |
| 2019-20 | 4,31,010.79 |
| 2020-21 | 4,71,378.00 |
| 2021-22 | 4,78,195.62 |
| 2022-23 | 5,25,166.15 |
It may be inferred from the above table that Budget allocation for Defence has been increasing consistently.
This Ministry does not maintain expenditure data of other countries. However, based on the data available on Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) Website, expenditure figures of the top five countries for the year 2021 are as under:-
| S No | Country | Expenditure for 2021 |
| 1 | United States of America | 800,672.20 |
| 2 | China | 293,351.90 |
| 3 | India | 76,598.00 |
| 4 | United Kingdom | 68,336.40 |
| 5 | Russia | 65,907.70 |
(in Current US $ Million)
It may be seen from the above table that India’s Defence Expenditure is 3rd largest among the major Defence spenders in the year 2021. It is pertinent to mention that Government resources come with a definite cost and accordingly allocations are made among various competing priorities based on the overall resource envelope of the Government. It is also stated that amongst the Central Ministries, Budget of Ministry of Defence is the highest.
As a part of ongoing Defence Reforms towards enhancing Capital Expenditure, the procedural guidelines governing Capital Acquisition projects have been revised and notified vide Defence Acquisition Procedure 2020. Further, the Services have been empowered with enhanced delegated Capital procurement powers at HQrs level, including fresh delegation of financial powers for overhauls, refits and upgrades to PSOs at Service Headquarters and Field Commanders.
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