News Brief
Congress Dealt Biggest Blow To India's Defence Sector: PM Modi On Media Report On BrahMos Export Delays Under UPA Government
India's BrahMos Supersonic Cruise Missile (Pic Via Twitter)
The previous Congress-led UPA government's apathy reportedly led to the delays in the export of BrahMos missiles to other countries, according to a media report.
The ABP News reported that there were significant delays in the export of BrahMos missiles during the UPA government's tenure.
The report reveals that a lack of political clearances was cited as the reason for halting progress.
A significant finding of the report reveals that a team from BrahMos Aerospace was prevented from visiting the Philippines shortly before the Modi government assumed office in 2014.
The report also highlights that in 2011, the then Foreign Secretary stated that discussions on BrahMos exports would not advance until an export policy was formulated.
Furthermore, in 2010, an Indonesian delegation in New Delhi was stopped from visiting BrahMos Aerospace.
"Congress's habit of delaying, diverting, and obstructing decisions, and making huge profits in the middle has dealt the biggest blow to the defence sector," PM Modi wrote in a post on X.
This report comes as the PM Modi led Central government is boosting its defence exports by sending a fourth battery of land-based BrahMos supersonic cruise missiles to the Philippines.
The delivery of these missiles is part of a $375 million deal signed between India and the Philippines in 2022.
Each battery consists of four launchers, each carrying three 290 km range missiles on mobile platforms, making them difficult to intercept by land or ship-based ballistic missile defence (BMD) systems.
The BrahMos deal has significantly contributed to India's defence exports, which reached Rs 21,083 crore in 2023-2024, showing a 32.5 per cent year-on-year growth. With its proven track record, India is expected to secure more orders for these supersonic missiles in the future.
