War Is the Real Test: What Operation Sindoor Revealed About Indian and Pakistani Military Capabilities

War is always the ultimate proving ground—not just for military hardware, but for the operational effectiveness of a nation’s defense posture. While exercises and parades may show off new systems, only combat reveals what actually works under pressure. The recent Indian response to the April 22 terrorist attack in Kashmir—Operation Sindoor—did exactly that.

The Indian Air Force reportedly struck nine terrorist infrastructure sites inside Pakistan in retaliation for the brutal assault on Indian tourists in Pahalgam, an attack linked to The Resistance Front, an offshoot of Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Taiba. But beyond the geopolitical message, Operation Sindoor sent a more sobering signal: Indian-made military systems are effective in real-world operations. Pakistan’s Chinese-made systems are not.

This wasn’t just a test of resolve—it was a field test of competing defense industrial strategies. India’s domestic weapons, ranging from advanced artillery to radar systems and missiles, functioned with speed and precision. By contrast, Pakistan’s Chinese-supplied layered air defense—built around platforms like the HQ-9/P, LY-80, and FM-90—failed to detect or intercept the incoming strikes.

India has traditionally relied on foreign partners such as Russia, France, Israel, and the United States for defense procurement. But over the last decade, that has begun to shift. The Modi government’s Make in India and Aatmanirbhar Bharat (Self-Reliant India) initiatives have aggressively pushed for domestic production across the defense sector—and the results are starting to show on the battlefield.

In FY 2023–24, India’s defense production reached a record ₹1.27 lakh crore (around $15 billion), a 16.7% increase from the previous year. Even more impressive: in 2024, 88% of the Indian Army’s ammunition needs were met by domestic production. That’s up from just 32% a decade ago.