1. India's pursuit of the vision of Viksit Bharat @2047 unfolds amidst a global backdrop of strategic ambiguity, fractured alliances and rapidly evolving threats. Regional conflicts, grey zone activities and rapid technological disruptions are steadily eroding the traditional boundaries between war and peace, blurring the roles of civilian and military, as well as domestic and international actors. Amidst the evolving global order, India emerges as a pivotal force navigating between fading certainties and emerging realities. Its capacity to provide stability and strategic clarity positions it to shape outcomes rather than merely react to them.
2. In this dynamic environment, the Armed Forces play a vital role as architects of a secure, self-reliant and future-ready India. Their responsibilities extend beyond battlefield to shaping the nation's security architecture and enhancing India's resilience and influence both domestically and internationally. To effectively respond to emerging challenges, the Army must lead in integrating advanced technologies, strengthening joint operations across all services and prepare for the entire spectrum of conflict- from grey zone to space and cyber threats, through non-kinetic as well as kinetic operations in non-contact and contact phases.
3. At a time when India must align national ambition with security innovation, Chanakya Defence Dialogue 2025 (CDD-2025), conducted by the Indian Army in collaboration with the Centre for Land Warfare Studies (CLAWS), offers a platform for reflection and serves as a catalyst for tangible actions. The event conducted on the theme 'Reform to Transform: Sashakt, Surakshit aur Viksit Bharat' provides a vital platform for providing inputs for shaping clear and forward-looking strategies by bringing together defence and strategic perspectives and fosters bold ideas, encourages insightful dialogue, and generates practical solution for paving the way for a 'Viksit Bharat'.
4. Intent. To synergise Indian Army's efforts towards 'Transformation Through Progressive Reforms', underpinned by National Security, Technology and Self Reliance with a commitment towards building a 'Sashakt, Surakshit aur Viksit Bharat'.
5. Conduct. A series for events starting from the month of Oct 2025 is proposed to be conducted at New Delhi. A pre-event comprising of seminar on 'Veer Yuva: Empowering Youth for India's National Security' as a 'Youth Leader Forum' will be conducted on 31 Oct 2025. In addition, a curtain raiser for the main event is also scheduled on 17 Nov 2025. The main event organized into five thematic sessions and special addresses focusing on a critical aspect of nation-building and security will be conducted over a period of two days as under: -
| Ser | Date | Session | Topic/ Remarks |
|---|---|---|---|
| 5.1 | 27 Nov 2025 | Inaugural Session | |
| 5.2 | Special Address | Hon'ble President of India | |
| 5.3 | Special Address | Bharat: A Timeless Legacy & Secure Future @2047 | |
| 5.4 | Session I | Op SINDOOR: A Sovereign Strategic Victory | |
| 5.5 | Special Address | Re-imagining Defence Reforms for Resilient National Security | |
| 5.6 | Session II | Changing Status Quo: Vitalising Defence Reforms | |
| 5.7 | Special Address | Resilient National Security @2047: The New Normal | |
| 5.8 | Session III | Civil Military Fusion: Drivers for Change | |
| 5.9 | Special Address | Defence Reforms for a Sashakt, Surakshit aur Viksit Bharat | |
| 5.10 | Special Address | Leveraging Technology for Strategic Superiority | |
| 5.11 | 28 Nov 2025 | Session IV | Battlefield Equalisers: Transforming Technologies for Future Wars |
| 5.12 | Special Address | Redefining Strategies: Conventional Wars Through Prizm of Technology | |
| 5.13 | Session V | Raksha Vivartan: Transforming into an Integrated, Agile & Modern Force |
6. Participation. The event will be attended by Indian as well as foreign representatives of strategic community, planners and policy makers from the government, defence PSUs & national security apparatus, scholars in the field of national security, economics, environment sustainability, science and technology and entrepreneurship. SMEs, eminent speakers, partners and representatives of premier Think Tanks from India as well as India's strategic partners in the neighbourhood and major powers viz Australia, Germany, Netherlands, Israel, Japan, Maldives, Russia, ROK and Sri Lanka have been invited for the event.
7. The seminar aims to produce key deliverables that will serve as valuable resources for policymakers, defense planners and academic researchers as under: -
7.1. Policy Recommendations for Government and Defence Leadership. Aligned with the GoI's vision for Viksit Bharat @ 2047, CDD 2025 will provide a strategic road map for leaders and policy makers within Armed Forces, Civil and Govt apparatus for strengthening national security through progressive reforms, technology infusion and civil-military collaboration for securing the nation and ensuring a modern, agile and future-ready force. It will aim to explore the evolving landscape of India's defence structure and the reform needed to align it with geopolitical landscape, technological and economic aspirations.
7.2. Inputs for Strengthening National Security in the Emerging Geopolitical Landscape. Leading National and International experts will provide strategic insights into emerging global and regional landscape for outlining strategies for India's strategic response and national security strategy as a resilient nation@ 2047. Inputs will be provided for evolving India's national security strategy in response to regional and global security challenges and understanding the link between defence policy and broader foreign policy.
7.3. Addressing the Evolving Nature of Security Threats. Transition of warfare beyond conventional domain to include aspects like weaponizing of technology, shifting warfare dynamics including hybrid as well as cognitive threats will be deliberated upon experts to provide tangible inputs for formulating mitigating strategies.
7.4. Solutions for Harnessing Technologies for Modern Warfare. The event will provide inputs for evolving a roadmap for integrating emerging technologies as battlefield equalisers such as AI, autonomous systems, hypersonic and robotics into operations as enunciated in Hon'ble RM 'Years of Reform' and IA initiatives under 'Decade of transformation'. The SMEs will provide guidelines for establishing robust and resilient cybersecurity and digital framework and inputs for adoption of next-generation warfare capabilities in the armed forces.
7.5. Policy Recommendation for Reforming Defence Ecosystem. SMEs will evaluate global best practices in defence transformation and provide recommendations for streamlining procurement processes for strengthening indigenous defence production and building a modern and self-reliant Defence Ecosystem. In addition, economic impact of defence sector on India's industrial growth will be enunciated.
7.6. Strengthening Civil-Military Synergy for National Security. The dialogue will provide inputs for enhancing civil-military integration by fostering defence-industrial partnerships, advancing dual-use technologies and enhancing academia-industry collaboration. Insight on institutional reforms for effective coordination between MoD, Defence Forces and other Stakeholders in order to make India the next def manufacturing hub will be provided.
7.7. Military Transformation into an Integrated, Agile and Modern Force. The experts will deliberate upon adaptive structures, integrating warfare strategies and leveraging technology for conventional as well as emerging threats to provide inputs for enhancing IA's operational efficacy agility, jointness and leadership development to create a future ready force capable of undertaking Multi Domain Operations (MDO). The deliberations will also provide inputs for evolving a cohesive strategy for MDO at the national level.