Defence Procurement Manual (DPM) 2025

The Ministry of Defence approved the Defence Procurement Manual (DPM) 2025, replacing the 2009 manual to accelerate revenue procurement.

What is Defence Procurement Manual?

Defence Procurement Manual (DPM) establishes rules for acquiring goods and services for daily operations, maintenance, and readiness of all Defence Services and Ministry establishments.
It is distinct from the Defence Acquisition Procedure, which governs capital acquisitions

Foster jointness among the three Services and help in maintaining the highest level of military preparedness through expeditious decision making.
Ensure timely availability of requisite resources to the armed forces and at appropriate cost.
Leverage the potential, expertise, and capability of the domestic defence market by ensuring active participation of private players, MSMEs, etc., along with Defence Public Sector Undertakings (DPSUs).

Self-Reliance: The manual promotes defense indigenisation under the revenue head, aligned with Finance Ministry procurement norms, while fostering coordination among Services for readiness.
Procurement Streamlining: Simplifies procurement worth about ₹1 lakh crore by decentralising authority to Competent Financial Authorities (CFAs) at the field level, enabling faster approvals.
Relaxed Penalties: No Liquidated Damages (LD) during development; minimal post-prototype penalties incentivise genuine suppliers and support indigenisation.
Long-Term Order Assurance: Assured guarantee of orders in terms of quantity, up to five years and beyond that up to another five years in special circumstances.
Dispensation of NOC Requirement: Requirement of obtaining No Objection Certificate from some DPSUs before going for open bidding has been dispensed with and tenders will be awarded purely on competitive basis.

Liquidated Damage refers to a predetermined amount of compensation specified in a contract, payable by a party if they fail to meet agreed obligations, such as delays or non-performance.

Make in India (Defence): Promotes domestic manufacturing and reduces import dependency.
Defence Acquisition Procedure (DAP) 2020: Prioritises indigenous procurement, with categories such as Buy Indian (IDDM).
Defence Production and Export Promotion Policy (DPEPP) 2020: Targets ₹1.75 lakh crore in production and ₹35,000 crore in exports by 2025.
iDEX and ADITI Schemes: Support start-ups and MSMEs in developing cutting-edge defence technologies.
SRIJAN Portal & Positive Indigenisation Lists: Aim to replace imports with domestic manufacturing.
Defence Corridors: Provide infrastructure and incentives for decentralised industrial growth