ABSTRACT
The end of the Cold War has not had a significant impact on either the level of India’s defense expenditure or the country’s commitment to its military industrial infrastructure. The regional security environment has not altered significantly – hostilities continue between India and its neighbors, Pakistan and China – and India has lost its long-term ally, the Soviet Union. If anything, the perception of threat has increased in the post-Cold War period. India continues to feel a need to assert its much-denied position in the world order, and there is strong public support for defense spending. India’s defense budget has not undergone substantial changes and there are no significant policies for “conversion” or “downsizing” of defense industries to civilian applications.There is however a small effort to diversify defense-based industries to commercial or civilian applications and products.
