India neither status quoist nor revisionist; it is a civilisational power: Rajnath Singh

New Delhi: India is neither a status quoist power nor a revisionist one; rather, it is a civilisational power, and the country's goal is to rise without rupture and have a positive change without conflict, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh said on Sunday.

In his address at the NDTV Defence Summit, Singh also said a nation that leads in technology will hold an advantage on the battlefield.

He underlined the progress made in the defence sector in the last decade, as well as some of the steps taken to make the armed forces future-ready.


On India's position in the world order, Singh said, "India is neither a status quoist power nor a revisionist power. I believe we are a civilisational power."

"The objective of our rise is not to leave another country behind or to dismantle the existing order; rather, it is about collective and inclusive growth. Our goal is - rise without rupture, positive change without conflict," he emphasised.

"We envision a world where India advances, and the entire world moves forward alongside us," he added.

The defence minister also said that today's warfare is not merely a matter of soldier versus soldier; rather, it spans multiple domains.

It encompasses land, air, sea, space, cyber, electronic warfare, information warfare, AI, drones, autonomous systems and precision weapons, he said.

"We recognise that the future landscape of security and the battlefield will be technology-driven. The nation that leads in technology will hold an advantage on the battlefield. That is why we have emphasised making India's defence strategy future-ready; our focus today extends beyond the weapons of the present," the defence minister said.

On hypersonic technology, he said, "India has successfully conducted a flight trial of a long-range hypersonic missile. A long-duration scramjet engine has also been tested."

Singh underlined that whether it is contact or non-contact warfare, or kinetic or non-kinetic warfare, India's armed forces are "continuously strengthening their capabilities and preparedness across every dimension".