The Transformation of India's Military Strategy and Warfare in the 21st Century

The landscape of 21st-century warfare has changed from kinetic, attrition-based wars to non-contact, network-centric, effect-based combat operations. This paper examines the strategic evolution of India’s military capacity: the process of incorporating and modernising aerial platforms and missile systems as the pillars of national defence. Facing a changing geopolitical landscape and the threat of a “two-front” collusive confrontation, it analyses the recalibration of the Indian Air Force (IAF) and strategic forces doctrinal orientations to achieve air supremacy and credible deterrence. The research critically reviews the role played by advanced aircraft technology platforms. It highlights the tactical synergy between fighter aircraft and new unmanned systems in the coming years, including High-Altitude Long-Endurance (HALE) UAVs and loitering munitions. It also analyses how India’s missile architecture has evolved and subsequent initiatives such as tactical precision, strategic deterrence, and the multiple layers of defence provided by air-defence systems. The paper concludes with a discussion of why Atmanirbhar Bharat (self-reliance) is crucial towards decreasing India’s dependency upon foreign Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs), and concludes that developing hypersonic technologies, directed energy weapons, and secure data links is critical for India to project power and retain strategic autonomy both in the Indian Ocean Region (IOR) and globally.