Indian Economy News

Defence gets US$ 72 billion (Rs. 5.94 lakh crores) in Budget 2023-24, registering a jump of 13% over the previous year

The Union Budget for FY24 envisages a total outlay of US$ 550 billion (Rs. 45,03,097 crores). The Ministry of Defence has been allocated a total Budget of US$ 72 billion (Rs. 5,93,537.64 crores), which is 13.18 % of the total budget. The total Defence Budget represents an enhancement of US$ 8.35 billion (Rs. 68,371.49 crores), which is 13% more than the Budget for 2022-23.

In order to be able to cater to the sustenance of weapon systems, platforms including ships/aircraft and their logistics, boost fleet serviceability, etc., the non-salary revenue/operational allocation has been increased from US$ 7.63 billion (Rs. 62,431 crores) in Budget Estimates 2022-23 to US$ 11 billion (Rs. 90,000 crores) in BE 2023-24. The Capital Allocation pertaining to modernisation and infrastructure development of the Defence Services has been increased to US$ 19.88 billion (Rs. 1,62,600 crores) representing a rise of 6.7% over FY23.

Towards strengthening Research and Development in Defence, the allocation to Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) has been enhanced by 9%, with a total allocation of US$ 2.84 billion (Rs. 23,264 crores) in BE 2023-24. To further foster innovation, encourage technology development and strengthen the Defence Industrial ecosystem in the country, Innovations for Defence Excellence (iDEX) and Defence Testing Infrastructure Scheme (DTIS) have been allocated US$ 14.2 million (Rs. 116 crores) and US$ 5.5 million (Rs. 45 crores) respectively representing an enhancement of 93% for iDEX and 95% for DTIS over 2022-23.

The Union Budget 2023-24 has announced a National Data Governance Policy to unleash innovation and research by start-ups and academia. This will enable access to anonymized data which will further boost the Defence Start-ups and iDEX scheme.

Furthermore, the Defence Pension Budget registers a notable jump of 15.5 % in 2023-24 to US$ 16.89 billion (Rs. 1,38, 205 crores) and the Government’s commitment to transforming healthcare outreach to our veterans, Defence Budget 2023-24 registers a notable increase of 52% in the allotment for Ex-Servicemen Contributory Health Scheme (ECHS) with BE allocation of US$ 664 million (Rs. 5,431.56 crores). The Union Budget 2023-24 has provided Exempt-Exempt-Exempt (EEE) status to the Agniveer Fund.

Disclaimer: This information has been collected through secondary research and IBEF is not responsible for any errors in the same.