Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s 79th Independence Day address from the Red Fort outlined not just aspirations but a decisive national roadmap to shield India from multiple external and internal threats. His announcements-the launch of the Sudarshan Chakra defence mission, the National Deep Water Exploration Mission, and renewed emphasis on indigenous fighter jet engines and space technologies-all reflect one overarching theme: India’s march towards self-reliance in security, energy, and innovation. Despite being among the world’s top military spenders, India still depends on imported technologies for critical defence platforms. Despite having vast human talent, we have failed for decades to build a reliable indigenous fighter jet engine. Despite being an aspiring economic powerhouse, India continues to import the majority of its crude oil and half of its natural gas requirements, exposing itself to global supply shocks.
PM’s speech, therefore, is a wake-up call for India’s next technological revolution. Among the most significant announcements was the 10-year defence initiative christened “Mission Sudarshan Chakra”. The system is envisioned as a multi-layered defence shield to protect India’s strategic and civilian assets-military bases, power plants, railways, hospitals, and even centres of faith-from modern threats. India’s adversaries-particularly Pakistan and China-are increasingly relying on standoff weapons, drones, ballistic missiles, and cyber warfare to destabilise our security architecture. In Operation Sindoor, India foiled waves of drone and missile attacks with indigenous technologies, proving that self-designed defence systems can outperform foreign imports when urgency meets innovation. However, this success must be institutionalised into a permanent, foolproof shield.
Experts suggest that Sudarshan Chakra could be India’s answer to Israel’s Iron Dome or even Russia’s S-400. What makes this mission unique is the Prime Minister’s insistence that the system must be researched, developed, and manufactured entirely within India. Technology transfers from foreign partners often become bargaining chips in geopolitics. A country friendly today may block access tomorrow. A self-reliant security shield eliminates such vulnerabilities and gives India strategic autonomy. But Operation Sindoor also exposed the scale of modern threats. Enemies are now focused on penetrating our skies with cheap drones, cyberattacks, and precision-guided munitions. Hence, Mission Sudarshan Chakra is not just desirable-it is indispensable.
Another major vulnerability highlighted by Modi is India’s crippling dependence on imported energy. India spends lakhs of crores every year on imports. These outflows drain resources that could otherwise fund rural development, poverty eradication, and infrastructure. The National Deep Water Exploration Mission seeks to address these issues by exploring untapped reserves beneath India’s seabed, particularly off the Andaman-Nicobar coast and deepwater basins of Andhra Pradesh. Described as a new-age “Samudra Manthan”, the mission aims to unlock hydrocarbon reserves that can reduce import dependence, create jobs, and strengthen India’s energy sovereignty. Geopolitical conflicts, from West Asia to Russia-Ukraine, have repeatedly disrupted energy supplies and spiked prices. For a rapidly developing country like India, where energy demand grows exponentially, domestic exploration is not just an economic imperative but a strategic necessity.
Perhaps the most glaring gap in India’s self-reliance story is the need to develop an indigenous fighter jet engine. The Kaveri engine project, launched in 1989, remains incomplete despite spending over Rs 2,035 crore. India continues to rely on foreign manufacturers like GE Aerospace, which have repeatedly delayed deliveries, causing bottlenecks in fighter jet production. This dependence cripples India’s ability to scale up its fighter fleet independently. In times of conflict, supply chains can be blocked due to shifting global alliances. The announcement urging youth and innovators to focus on developing a jet engine indigenously is both timely and urgent. India has the talent pool; what is needed is coordinated investment, long-term policy support, and collaboration between DRDO, HAL, private industry, and academia.
India’s space programme has already positioned it in the global elite. From launching satellites for dozens of countries to planning the Gaganyaan human spaceflight mission and a full-fledged Bharatiya Antariksh Station by 2035, India is setting benchmarks. With 300 space start-ups working in tandem with ISRO, the ecosystem is ripe for breakthrough innovations in satellite technology, space propulsion, asteroid mining, and space-based solar power. The PM’s call to accelerate indigenous space technologies reflects confidence in India’s youth and its expanding private sector ecosystem. Space, like energy and defence, is no longer just a domain of prestige-it is a domain of strategic control. The future wars may be fought in space, over communication, surveillance, and navigation networks. India cannot afford dependence here either.
Equally important is a warning on illegal infiltration and demographic manipulation. India’s rise on the global stage has inevitably attracted hostility. Adversaries-sometimes openly, sometimes covertly-will continue to exploit India’s vulnerabilities. The only sustainable response is to translate the PM’s vision into reality; India must adopt a multi-pronged, innovation-driven strategy. Create public-private innovation hubs where DRDO, ISRO, IITs, start-ups, and global collaborators co-develop defence, energy, and space technologies; launch a National Defence Innovation Fund to back high-risk, high-reward projects like jet engines and hypersonic missiles; build AI-powered cyber and drone warfare centres to prepare for next-gen conflicts; incentivise deep-sea exploration with cutting-edge robotics and undersea mapping technologies. Promote dual-use technologies that serve both civilian and military sectors, thereby ensuring scalability and commercial viability; establish youth-driven space-tech incubators to harness the creativity of India’s start-up ecosystem; and finally, adopt strategic procurement reforms to guarantee that innovations move from labs to deployment quickly. By merging state power, private enterprise, and youth talent under a mission-mode approach, India can leapfrog conventional limitations.
India has always risen to the occasion whenever tested. From nuclear tests in Pokhran to the triumph of ISRO’s Chandrayaan-3, from Balakot strikes to Operation Sindoor, every challenge has sparked new confidence. The journey from a developing to a developed nation by 2047 requires not just economic reforms but strategic reforms in defence, energy, and technology. These are long-term missions, and they demand consistency, innovation, and unwavering political will. If implemented with the intensity and commitment outlined by the Prime Minister, India will not just be a consumer of global technologies but a creator, exporter, and leader.
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