Defence Drone Manufacturing Companies in India

In the last few years, drones have moved from hobby use to the centre of modern warfare. Reports on global conflicts show that small, low-cost drones are changing how armies fight and protect their borders.

Defence drone manufacturing companies in India are growing fast as the country focuses on stronger security, smart surveillance, and advanced military technology. This content should highlight leading Indian drone makers, their defence-grade UAVs, core technologies, use cases in armed forces, and how they support border protection and modern warfare. Include simple language, key features, industry trends, and why Indian-made defence drones are becoming globally competitive.

India has understood this change very clearly. Our country is now pushing hard to build its own drones for defence, and also strong drone defence system solutions, so that we are not dependent on foreign technology.

Under Make in India for defence, the government has already indigenised thousands of items and is targeting ₹3 lakh crore in defence production with big export goals by 2029. Press Information Bureau: Drones and anti-drone technologies are a key part of this plan.

In this blog, we will look at:

The policy support behind drones for defence
The main drone manufacturing companies in India
The growing ecosystem of anti drone defence systems
How companies like Kotai Electronics are adding value with Made-in-India counter-drone solutions

All in simple, easy English, for Indian readers who want a clear picture of this fast-growing sector.

Policy Push: Why India Is Investing in Defence Drones

The growth of defence drone manufacturing in India is not by chance. It is backed by strong policies:

Make in India – Defence:
The official Make in India Defence portal lists projects like “Autonomous Surveillance and Armed Drone Swarm”, which shows how serious the government is about building drone capability inside the country.
iDEX – Innovations for Defence Excellence:
iDEX is a Ministry of Defence programme that supports startups, MSMEs and innovators working on defence and aerospace technologies. It gives funding, guidance and faster procurement routes. Drones and counter-drone systems are among the technologies supported under this scheme.
Import ban and incentives for drones:
A Times of India report on Tamil Nadu’s drone ecosystem explains that India has placed restrictions on drone imports and launched a Production-Linked Incentive (PLI) scheme, with a target to capture about 12.2% of the global drone market by 2030.The Times of India
Big orders for armed drones:
In August 2025, the defence ministry approved a plan to buy 87 armed drones with about 60% indigenous content, along with other major weapons.

Because of these steps, many defence drone manufacturing companies in India are now growing fast and planning for long-term expansion.

What Types of Drones Does Defence Need?

Before we talk about companies, let us quickly see the main categories of drones for defence that the Indian market is focusing on, based on public reports and company information:

Surveillance and reconnaissance drones:
Used for border patrol, real-time video, mapping and intelligence.
Armed or combat drones:
Drones that can carry weapons or guided munitions and hit targets with precision.
Kamikaze / loitering munitions:
These drones fly towards a target and destroy themselves along with the target. A recent example is Apollyon Dynamics’ kamikaze drones supplied to the Indian Army.
Swarm drones:
Multiple drones working together like a swarm for surveillance or strike missions. Companies like NewSpace Research are working on such systems.
Logistics and support drones:
Used to deliver medicines, ammo and supplies in difficult terrain.

For all these use-cases, we also need anti drone defence systems to guard bases, refineries, ports, airports and cities from enemy drones. So the ecosystem has both drones and drone defence systems.

Leading Defence Drone Manufacturing Companies in India

Now, let us see some of the important defence drone manufacturing companies in India, based on multiple market studies and news reports.

Large established defence and aerospace companies

Several big Indian defence companies have entered the drone and UAV space:

Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd (HAL):
HAL is India’s largest defence equipment manufacturer and works on aircraft, helicopters and aerospace systems. It is part of the group of Indian companies developing military drones and related technologies.Equitymaster
Larsen & Toubro (L&T):
L&T has announced plans for high-altitude platform drones and is active in defence electronics and missiles. It is listed among Indian companies entering the military drone market.
Solar Industries:
Known for ammunition and explosives, Solar Industries is also involved in defence drone technologies and is linked to the Bhargavastra anti-drone micro-missile system, which we will discuss in the counter-drone section.
Paras Defence & Space Technologies:
Paras Defence focuses on defence electronics, opto-electronics and space systems, and is involved in indigenising drone components and payloads.
RattanIndia Enterprises / NeoSky:
RattanIndia has entered the drone sector through its subsidiary NeoSky India, building drone platforms for various industry use-cases, including security.

These large groups bring capital, manufacturing experience and strong defence relationships, which help the overall ecosystem.

UAV-focused Indian companies

Along with big players, many specialised UAV makers are now known names in drones for defence:

ideaForge Technology:
IdeaForge designs high-performance drones used for surveillance and border security. Case studies show its drones supporting Indian agencies with long-endurance and reliable ISR (intelligence, surveillance, reconnaissance) operations.ideaforgetech.com
Asteria Aerospace:
Listed among top drone companies in India, Asteria makes enterprise and defence-grade drones and works closely with security agencies.Built In
Garuda Aerospace:
Garuda brands itself as one of the best drone manufacturing companies in India and runs a dedicated defence drone division. It offers drones for surveillance, search and rescue, infrastructure inspection, intelligence and border patrol.garudaaerospace.com
In 2025, it opened a Defence Drone Facility near Chennai and unveiled five new indigenous defence drones to strengthen battlefield and disaster response capability.
NewSpace Research:
NewSpace is recognised as a major indigenous developer of defence UAVs, especially swarm drones for Indian forces.
Dhaksha Unmanned Systems, Zuppa, Big Bang Boom:
A Times of India article on Tamil Nadu’s defence corridor highlights Dhaksha, Garuda, Zuppa Geo Navigation and Big Bang Boom as key drone and electronic warfare suppliers to the armed forces.
Paras Aerospace, Throttle Aerospace, TechEagle, Redwing Labs and others:
Ecosystem maps of Indian drone manufacturers list many such companies providing UAVs and subsystems for defence, agriculture and logistics.

New innovators and startups

The drone space also has young innovators:

Apollyon Dynamics:
This startup, founded by two engineering students, has delivered radar-reduced kamikaze drones capable of 300 km/h to the Indian Army, specially designed for Indian terrain.

Together, these firms form the main layer of defence drone manufacturing companies in India, building everything from small quadcopters to swarm and loitering munitions.

The Other Half: Drone Defence System and Anti-Drone Solutions

Just building drones is not enough. Every drone we deploy can face enemy drones in return. That is why anti drone defence systems and drone defence system products are growing just as fast.

Here are some key Indian players and systems, based on official and media reports:

BEL – DRDO Counter Drone System (D4):
Bharat Electronics Limited has productionised a DRDO-designed Counter Drone System that can search, detect, track and neutralise micro and small UAVs using both soft-kill (jamming) and hard-kill options. It provides optical/thermal imagery and RF spectrum display to the operator.BEL
Adani Defence & Aerospace – Vehicle Mounted C-UAS:
At Aero India 2025, Adani Defence and DRDO unveiled an indigenous vehicle-mounted counter-drone system developed under a transfer-of-technology framework, aimed at improving protection against asymmetric drone threats.Adani Enterprises
Zen Technologies – Anti Drone System and Vyomkavach:
Zen’s Anti Drone System (CUAS) uses multiple sensors and jamming to detect, classify, track and neutralise hostile drones.zentechnologies.com
Zen also introduced Vyomkavach, an AI-powered anti-drone system with advanced sensors, electronic jammers and kinetic interceptors for real-time counter-UAV operations.
Indrajaal – Wide-area AI anti-drone dome:
Indrajaal, developed by Grene Robotics, is an AI-driven wide area anti-drone and counter-UAS system that can cover up to 4,000 sq km using radar, RF, spoofers and AI command intelligence. News reports show it was deployed at key critical infrastructure, including naval ports.
Bhargavastra – Micro-missile C-UAS:
The Bhargavastra micro-missile system by Solar Defence and Aerospace is an Indian anti-drone system using guided and unguided micro-missiles and rockets to defeat loitering munitions and autonomous swarm drones that are hard to jam.Wikipedia

These examples show that defence drone manufacturing companies in India are not only building UAVs, but also sophisticated drone defence systems.

Kotai Electronics – Made-in-India Anti-Drone Defence Systems

Since this article is for Kotai Electronics, let us see where the company stands in this ecosystem.

According to its official site, Kotai Electronics is an Indian defence product manufacturing company that designs and manufactures counter-drone systems for electronic warfare.Kotai Electronics Pvt. Ltd.

Its flagship product line is the KERF007 Anti Drone System, described as a Made-in-India integrated C-UAS solution that combines:

4D radar
Electro-optical and thermal camera
Local Processing Unit (LPU)
AI-powered software
Integrated drone jammer

all inside one compact device.Kotai Electronics Pvt. Ltd.

Public details about KERF007 and related systems highlight features such as:

Detection range and coverage:
Radar-based detection of drones up to around 3 km with 360-degree coverage, tuned for Indian terrain and weather.
Real-time monitoring and mapping:
Visualisation of drone movement on digital maps for better situational awareness.
Disruption and neutralisation:
Ability to neutralise drones up to roughly 2 km (with options going higher) using jamming and other measures.
AI-driven analysis:
AI and 4D radar used together to recognise genuine drone threats, reduce false alarms and support automatic or semi-automatic response.
Single integrated unit:
Unlike many global CUAS solutions that are deployed as separate radar, camera, jammer and processing components, KERF007 integrates them into one system, which can simplify deployment and maintenance.

Kotai’s own content states that its mission is to build radar-based anti drone defence systems specifically for Indian operational environments, combining indigenous hardware with AI-powered situational awareness.

This places Kotai Electronics firmly inside the circle of Indian companies offering drone defence systems for defence, police, government infrastructure and industrial security.

How Defence Organisations Choose a Drone or Anti-Drone Partner

When the armed forces, police or critical infrastructure operators look at defence drone manufacturing companies in India, they consider several practical points. Insights from Kotai’s own technical blogs on effective anti drone systems offer a useful checklist:

Detection and tracking quality
- Does the system use advanced sensors such as 4D radar, RF detectors, optical and infrared cameras?
- Can it detect small drones in bad weather and low-visibility conditions?
AI-powered threat analysis
- Can the software differentiate between friendly and hostile drones?
- Can it reduce false alarms and help operators react faster?
Neutralisation options
- What kind of countermeasures are available: RF jamming, GNSS spoofing, kinetic interceptors or micro-missiles?
- Are these measures safe for civilian environments?
Integration with existing security
- Can the drone or drone defence system connect with current CCTV, radar, command-and-control or ITMS platforms?
Scalability and adaptability
- Can the system be scaled from a small factory to a large refinery, port or border region?
- Is it possible to customise for different ranges and threat levels?

Government policy also prefers solutions that are designed and built in India, as seen in the Make in India and iDEX guidelines, and the high indigenous content mandated in recent procurement approvals.

This naturally benefits Indian companies like Kotai Electronics, BEL, Zen Technologies, Garuda Aerospace, ideaForge and many others who are focusing on local R&D and manufacturing.

Why This Ecosystem Matters for India’s Security

Bringing together defence drone manufacturing companies in India and advanced anti drone defence systems creates a full-stack security shield:

On the frontlines:
Surveillance and armed drones give soldiers better intelligence and precision strike capabilities with lower risk to human life.
At critical infrastructure:
Anti-drone solutions like KERF007, Indrajaal domes, BEL’s D4 systems and other CUAS platforms protect refineries, power plants, airports and ports from rogue drones.
In smart cities and industry:
Drone and anti-drone solutions are also being adapted for industrial estates, warehouses and refineries, where reports show increasing interest from operators after recent incidents and operations
For innovation and jobs:
Programmes like iDEX and defence corridors (for example, in Tamil Nadu) are helping startups and MSMEs grow, which supports high-skill jobs and exports in the long term.

For a country of India’s size and security needs, it is important that the full chain—from drones for defence to drone defence systems—is increasingly in Indian hands.

Conclusion: The Road Ahead for Defence Drone Manufacturing in India

To summarise:

India is making strong policy moves with Make in India, iDEX, PLI and import controls to grow its own drone and anti-drone ecosystem.
A combination of large defence PSUs and private giants (HAL, L&T, BEL, Adani, Solar Industries, Paras Defence, RattanIndia) and specialised UAV firms (ideaForge, Garuda Aerospace, Asteria, NewSpace, Dhaksha and others) form the backbone of defence drone manufacturing companies in India.
On the protection side, India has multiple anti drone defence systems—from BEL’s D4 and Zen’s Vyomkavach to wide-area domes like Indrajaal and micro-missile systems like Bhargavastra.
Kotai Electronics adds to this ecosystem with its Made-in-India KERF007 Anti Drone System and radar-based CUAS solutions tailored for Indian terrain and critical infrastructure, combining 4D radar, AI and integrated jamming in a single device.

For defence planners, police forces, oil & gas operators, airport managers and smart city leaders, this growing list of defence drone manufacturing companies in India is good news. It means:

More choice of drones for defence built for Indian conditions
Stronger drone defence system options to protect the airspace
Better long-term independence from foreign technologies

For readers of kotaielectronics.com, it also means that when you evaluate an anti-drone partner, you can look for companies that are not just importing parts, but actually designing and building anti drone defence systems in India itself—and backing them with AI, 4D radar and deep local understanding, just like Kotai Electronics states in its own mission.