The Impressive TimesNew Delhi, July 7, 2025 — Raksha Mantri Rajnath Singh addressed the Controllers’ Conference 2025 of the Defence Accounts Department (DAD) in New Delhi, underlining the department’s pivotal role in ensuring India’s defence readiness, financial efficiency, and strategic autonomy.
Referring to the successful execution of Operation Sindoor, he highlighted the valour of Indian Armed Forces and the performance of indigenous defence equipment, which has significantly boosted global demand.
“The world is looking at our defence sector with new respect,” Singh stated. “The demonstration of homegrown capabilities during Operation Sindoor has proven India’s self-reliance and combat preparedness.”
The Minister urged the DAD to evolve from a ‘controller’ to a ‘facilitator’, aligning with the growing role of the private sector in defence manufacturing under the Aatmanirbhar Bharat initiative.
He credited the ongoing transformation to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visionary leadership, which has led to structural reforms in defence planning, procurement, and indigenous innovation
Rising Global Military Spending: With global defence expenditure reaching $2.7 trillion (as per SIPRI), Singh emphasized India’s opportunity to expand defence exports and develop dual-use and R&D-based technologies.
Economic View of Defence Spending: The Raksha Mantri encouraged shifting the perception of defence budgets from being expenditure to being growth-generating investments.
₹1 Lakh Crore RDI Scheme: He underlined the potential of the newly launched Research, Development and Innovation (RDI) Scheme to fund defence tech from startups, MSMEs, and private firms.
Public Procurement & Digital Platforms: Over ₹2 lakh crore worth of defence procurement has been conducted through GeM (Government e-Marketplace). Singh urged continued focus on transparency and accountability.
Veteran Welfare via SPARSH: More than 32 lakh pensioners are now integrated under the SPARSH digital platform, which ensures faceless, transparent pension disbursal.
Upcoming Digital Reforms: Initiatives like the Comprehensive Pay System and Centralised Database Management System will further simplify defence finance operations.
Internal Evaluation Culture: He called for organic reform through introspection, instead of relying solely on audits or external consultants.
Rajnath Singh also emphasized the importance of error-free financial execution, stating that even small mistakes can delay resources for soldiers, directly affecting operational readiness.
He congratulated the department on achieving full utilisation of the capital budget in FY 2024–25, and encouraged efficiency-led growth, stressing that each financial decision contributes to national security and self-reliance.
The event also marked the release of:
Vision Document
Mission Statement
New Motto – “Alert, Agile, Adaptive”
Market Intelligence Report 2025 (2nd Edition)
Revised Defence Accounts Code
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