Indian Drone Industry 2026

The Indian Drone Industry is set for massive growth by 2026, driven by strong government support (like the anticipated Budget 2026 incentives under Drone Shakti for manufacturing), rising civilian adoption in sectors from agriculture to delivery, and increasing defense needs, with projections pointing towards a ₹15,000 Crore turnover and significant expansion into global manufacturing, positioning India as a major UAV hub with key players like Ideaforge & Zen Tech benefiting.

Mr. Ankit Mehta, CEO & Co-Founder, ideaForge Technology Ltd., reflecting on how 2025 shaped the UAV ecosystem in India and globally, and what lies ahead for the sector in 2026, said, “The year 2025 made one thing clear, UAVs are transforming both national security and enterprise operations domestically as well as globally. From Operation Sindoor to everyday missions led by security forces, industries and state agencies, drones consistently delivered reliable intelligence where it mattered most. Also, after Op Sindoor, Electronic Warfare resilience has become a baseline requirement for the Indian forces operating in border areas. This has been evident with the increased procurement activities, budget allocations and order in flows. Driven by geopolitical exigencies, this year, the UAV demand surged sharply in the Indian defence sector, after a muted 2024.

Irrespective of the market conditions, we have been investing in indigenization and technology development, in areas we believe are the inevitable directions for the country’s strategic autonomy and this technology. This has paid off well since the demand has started to rebound in the first quarter of 2025 through Emergency Procurement’s cycle 5 (EP5) and now EP6. Our long-term domestic and global partnerships helped us expand our impact across defence, governance and industry at large. Achieving ‘Fit For Indian Military Use’ certification for SWITCH and NATO codification for our SWITCH and Q6 platforms were important milestones, validating our standing as a credible player in cutting-edge UAV technology. Successful trials and Defence orders for Zolt have once again proved how important it is to persistently invest in developing tech that delivers next generation capability to customers.

The ecosystem around us strengthened as well this year. Government and institutional support accelerated deployments. Announcement of INR 1 Lakh crore RDI fund signaled that the government is serious about strengthening R&D in the country and developing cutting-edge technologies.

Rationalization and clarification on GST rates further help consolidate the progress that the industry has made and will make Indian products more competitive. Increased focus on cybersecurity and country of origin checks becoming a standard part of the army’s procurement requirements has given indigenous players further confidence that their efforts in developing indigenous and secure tech will be recognized and appreciated by customers.

India UAV Drones market is expected to reach USD1,810 million by FY2026 growing at a CAGR of 14.61%, owing to the rapid technological advancements and growing need for advanced security systems. With increasing Drone penetration in the defense systems of India, the need for border security concerns and healthcare requirements is creating numerous growth opportunities for the UAV Drones market in India. The end users are progressively receiving diverse type of Drones, for example, Fixed Wing, HALE, MALE, UCAV to confirm their identity along with increasing initiatives of The Government of India in broadly utilizing Drones in different activities like defense, entertainment, industrial, agriculture and commercial uses which in turn is straightforwardly pushing the demand for the market over the coming years.

As we enter 2026, the industry is entering a new phase where performance, reliability, resilience and autonomy will become baseline expectations. Leveraging the existing and new AI capabilities is going to become crucial as we go forward in the next few years because there is a need in the market for a lot more autonomous operations on drones in the future. And that is particularly required because with all the electronic warfare and counter drone systems that are going to be more prevalent on the ground today, the need for drones to do missions while being completely radio silent is going to go up”.

India is not only building drones but also learning how to stop enemy drones. Systems like the D4 System can detect and destroy rogue UAVs using radar, jammers, and lasers. The Army also inducted the SAKSHAM system, which uses AI to detect and neutralise threats. Another system, Bhargavastra, can stop drone swarms even in high mountains.

The DRDO also tested powerful laser weapons like Shahastra Shakti, which can hit targets at 5 km. With this success, India joined the US, China, and Russia in laser defence capability.