Defence Budget: Highest Increase In Capital Outlay In 15 Years; India Spent Rs 20,700 Crore On Unbudgeted Expenses Amid Ladakh Standoff

The Narendra Modi government spent Rs 20,776 crore on unbudgeted defence expenses, including emergency purchases of equipment, amid the ongoing standoff with China in eastern Ladakh, budget documents show.

According to the budget document, the government had allocated Rs 1,13,734 for capital expenses in the 2020-21 budget. However, the revised estimates show that this has gone up to Rs 1,34,510 crore during the period.

A whopping Rs 20,776 crore unbudgeted expenditure on defence reveals the massive scale of India’s response to China’s provocations last year.

Emergency purchases made last year include procurement of winter clothing from the US, ammunition from Russia and missiles from France.

China’s aggressive posturing along the Line of Actual Control, which involved large-scale mobilisation of troops and equipment, has resulted in the worst border clash between the two countries in over four decades.

In the budget presented by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman today, the government has increased allocation for defence by 7.34 per cent, excluding pensions. The increase in capital acquisition budget this year, which will be used for the purchase of new equipment, is pegged at around 18 per cent.

The outlay for modernisation has increased from Rs 1,13,734 lakh crore last year to Rs 1,35,060 crore. According to Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, increase in the capital acquisition budget this year is the “highest” in 15 years.

“I specially thank PM & FM for increasing the defence budget to 4.78 lakh crore for FY 21-22, which includes capital expenditure worth Rs 1.35 lakh crore. It is nearly 19 percent increase in defence capital expenditure. This is highest ever increase in capital outlay for defence in 15 years,” the minister tweeted.

The total outlay for defence in the 2021 budget is pegged at Rs 4,78,195 crore.