India releases Land Warfare Doctrine 2026
An Indian Army Akashteer air-defence control and reporting system. Defence Minister Rajnath Singh stressed the importance of joint, multidomain operations when he released the Land Warfare Doctrine 2026 on 23 October. (PIB)
India has released a new doctrine to position the Indian Army to meet challenges over the coming decade and beyond. The Land Warfare Doctrine 2026 was released on 23 October by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh at the Army Commanders' Conference in New Delhi.
The Indian Ministry of Defence (MoD) said the doctrine “provides an overarching framework to prepare the Indian Army to meet the challenges posed by the evolving character of warfare and future conflicts”.
The MoD did not provide an outline of the new doctrine. However, in remarks accompanying its release, Singh called on army commanders to develop a long-term strategic vision spanning 20–30 years while remaining prepared for immediate and emerging challenges.
Referring Singh's remarks, the MoD said, “[Singh] underscored the importance of accelerating efforts in areas such as artificial intelligence (AI), autonomous systems, data analytics, cyber security, and secure communication networks.”
The MoD also said Singh called for an integrated approach to modern warfare, “stressing that success would depend on multidomain capabilities and seamless co-ordination in joint operations”.
Media in India reported that the doctrine also put emphasis on unmanned systems, especially unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), and the requirement for the Indian Army to make UAV operations a secondary skill across the force.
Other reported priorities in the doctrine include requirements for more resilient communications and logistics, and greater use of manned-unmanned teaming (MUM-T).
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