India’s Army Chief, General Upendra Dwivedi, warmly welcomed the sweeping GST reforms unveiled by the 56th GST Council, which will take effect on September 22, 2025. The overhaul streamlines the tax structure into two main slabs—5 percent and 18 percent—abolishing multiple previous rates and ushering in the “GST 2.0” regime. Crucially for defence, a broad range of military items—including C-130 and C-295 transport aircraft, ejection seats, ship-launched missiles, underwater vessels, GSAT systems, flight-motion and target-motion simulators, deep-submergence rescue vessels, RPA/UAVs for military use, high-performance batteries, sonobuoys, artillery-related spares, communication devices like software-defined radios, rockets over 100 mm, and testing equipment—will be exempted from GST. Other equipment—tanks, armoured vehicles, walkie-talkies, and software-powered radios—will now attract just 5 percent GST, down from 12–28 percent. General Dwivedi emphasized that these changes will significantly bolster defence corridors, enabling enhanced investments, and provide MSMEs and startups with more resources for modernization, training, and R&D—a vital boost for military procurement and integrated theatre operations in future wars.