The first anniversary of Operation Sindoor has, by many accounts, demonstrated the Indian armed forces’ ability to swiftly overwhelm Pakistan’s air defence system through precise strikes deep inside the enemy territory. It also flagged the leadership’s clarity on exercising restraint after fulfilling the military objective, unlike the global tendency to prolong conflicts for broader diplomatic leverage.

In the last year, top serving military generals, security managers and defence experts have repeatedly outlined in different forums the achievements of Operation Sindoor and challenges ahead. 

Leading global defence experts and think tanks, including the Swiss-based Centre d’Histoire et de Prospective Militaires (CHPM), acknowledged that the Indian Air Force had decisive air dominance, led by a combination of Rafale fighter jets and S-400 missile system,  dismantling nine terror infrastructure during the 88-hour conflict, which began on May 7, 2025. 

Indian air firepower also successfully waded through Pakistan’s Chinese-supplied AD systems like the HQ-9/LY-80 and encountered Beijing-origin PL-17 missiles. This was in response to the April 22 terror attack on tourists in Pahalgam that left 26 dead and several injured. 

Overall, many global experts also called Pakistan's propaganda on destroying military infrastructure in India. 

The anniversary comes at a time when India and the rest of the world are still getting a live tutorial from the continued global conflicts in West Asia and between Russia and Ukraine -- making the job to address challenges more complicated.

However, the four-day conflict has quietly re-engineered India’s understanding of modern warfare, which is less about spectacle. It’s oriented more towards technology absorption, settling with the cost asymmetric advantage of unmanned systems against legacy equipment, bringing in more comprehensive and layered air defence systems, speed, scale and innovation.

The government responded with the highest ever defence budget allocation of ₹7.85 lakh crore for FY27, a 15 per cent increase over budgetary estimates of FY26. Policy changes for quicker acquisition, like the Defence Acquisition Procedure (DAP), 2026, is being amended to replace the 2020 version.

The revised DAP is expected to speed up capital procurement, increase indigenous content (IC) to 60 per cent, and bring down acquisition slabs to four from five.

At the same time, the tri-services have added specialised drone units for enhanced surveillance, targeted fire, and air defence systems, signaling doctrinal shift. The Indian Army has taken a step further to bring in restructuring to raise tech-driven units -- Bhairav Battalions, positioned between special forces and conventional infantry, and Ashni Platoons -- for special operations that are drone-centric and are hybrid in nature.

The government also expedited the long-standing demand of the IAF for filling up its squadron strength to fight a two-and-a-half-front war. India has officially given a go-ahead to the biggest ever ₹3.25 lakh crore deal for 114 Rafale fighter jets, as part of the Multi-Role Fighter Aircraft (MRFA) program. The IAF is also scheduled to get 180 Tejas Mk1A in the coming years.

Speaking to businessline, Shailender Arya, Senior Advisor, The Asia Group, said Operation Sindoor accelerated the drone and counter-drone acquisition programs, leading to the rapid growth of the drone sector in India. Sindoor provided the operational necessity as well as the demand signal. “The legacy of Operation Sindoor is a definitive shift towards kinetic but non-contact operations in the subcontinental context, and the accompanying reorientation of the defence industrial ecosystem towards such complex systems,” he added.

Not just the BrahMos and Akash AD systems, other Made in India military hardware and software too worked alongside imported weapon systems during the offensive against Pakistan.

As a completely indigenous design and production system, Tata Advanced Systems Limited’s (TASL) ALS 50 loitering ammunition was extensively used by the IAF. “During Operation Sindoor, as a home-grown system, it brought enhanced operational flexibility, real-time target acquisition and precision in engaging targets,” said a TASL spokesperson.

One of the biggest learnings from Ops Sindoor is the cost asymmetric advantage of drones as weapons. They’ve moved from being tools for situational awareness to being weapons of choice for both attacking and defending national security, insisted Sai Pattabiram, Founder & Managing Director of Chennai-based Zuppa Geo Navigation Technologies.

The Indian defence industry responded swiftly and efficiently to the call of the armed forces on the eve of Op Sindoor. Every single stakeholder — from large private firms to MSMEs and defence start-ups — proved their capabilities.

“Today, the Indian Defence Industry, with learnings from Ops Sindoor, has enhanced capabilities across board and established itself as a strong, technology-driven, and trustworthy defence industrial base,” said Rajinder Singh Bhatia, former President of SIDM and Chairman KSSL (Defence Vertical of Kalyani Group- Flagship company Bharat Forge).

While the transformation being attempted is generational, the pace at which changes are taking place is still frustrating, according to officials in uniform and industry sources. India needs to learn lessons from Iran, which came out much stronger and better prepared against the military heavyweights of the US and Israel after learning lessons from its first nine-day faceoff with them.

Iran switched to Chinese satellite technology from the US one, effectively used cheap kamikaze long endurance drones against tech-might and went for a decentralised military command structure to avoid a collapse of the response to shadow conflict involving Washington and Tel Aviv in case of top leadership taking a hit. That actually happened in the killing of Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and other high-ranking officials in Tehran as part of a series of Israeli airstrikes since February 28, 2026.

India too will have to act fast as the threat of Op Sindoor 2.0 still exists. Besides that, India is lagging far behind in space warfare, which is the future battlefield.

Published on May 6, 2026