Navy chief Admiral Krishna Swaminathan on Tuesday called self-reliance a "strategic necessity", stressing the need to build a force capable of fighting, sustaining operations and adapting without being constrained by external dependencies.
Addressing the Delhi Defence Dialogue, organised by a think tank, he said Aatmanirbharta (self-reliance) did not mean isolation but enabled India to collaborate with friendly foreign countries "from a position of strength, and not from a position of weakness".
Referring to growing geopolitical tensions, Swaminathan said historical fault lines were being reignited, with the use of force increasingly becoming an acceptable, and even preferred, instrument of national policy.
Highlighting how conflicts could disrupt supply chains and affect military capabilities, he stressed the need for a 21st-century Navy that could "fight, sustain and adapt by itself" without being dependent on external agencies or factors.
Citing the ongoing conflict in Ukraine, he underlined the importance of building indigenous capabilities to ensure operational readiness even amid disruptions to global supply chains.
The Navy chief also flagged the growing influence of non-state actors and said the democratisation of technology had made advanced capabilities accessible to both "good boys" and "bad boys".
He called for addressing critical capability gaps, increasing investment in research and development, and focusing on niche and emerging technologies.
Swaminathan also stressed the need to ensure that innovations were translated into operational capabilities within a reasonable timeframe.
(With inputs from PTI)