Raksha Mantri Launches Digital Defence Financial Initiatives
Raksha Mantri Shri Rajnath Singh launched several key digital and financial management initiatives during the Defence Accounts Department's 279th Annual Day celebration at DRDO Bhawan, New Delhi on October 01, 2026. The Minister emphasized the need for "maximum digitization, maximum automation, maximum transparency" and called for transitioning from annual review to "any time review" of budgets with real-time data for informed decision-making.
Three major initiatives were unveiled to strengthen financial integration and expenditure tracking. The SAKSHAM bill audit and payment system has been integrated with the Indian Army Financial Information System (IAFIS), enabling digital transmission of budget, sanction, and bill information between organizations. This integration facilitates real-time sharing of bill status and budget balances with completely paperless bill processing.
The Treasury Single Account (TSA) system was inaugurated for Just-In-Time release of funds to autonomous bodies under the Ministry of Defence. Operationalized through the Payment Routing and Integrated System Management (PRISM) platform, the system is fully integrated with RBI eKUBER and will provide better grant management and greater visibility of accounting and expenditure.
The revamped National Compilation System (NCS) for Defence was launched as the single source for accounting and compilation of all Defence expenditure in India. The system has been comprehensively redesigned on a new technical architecture to provide accurate budget reporting and expenditure monitoring across the unique financial delegation framework of the Ministry of Defence, enabling granular reporting to the Ministry of Finance, Ministry of Defence, Service Headquarters and Field Controllers.
Significant achievements highlighted include near 100% expenditure during FY 2025-26 through joint efforts of DAD and all three Services. The SAMAR-SETU system manages pay and allowances for more than 2.3 lakh Agniveers of the Indian Army through fully automated processes from the Central Agniveer Pay and Accounts Office.
The Raksha Mantri Awards for Excellence 2026 were presented to recognize outstanding achievements in implementing key reforms and projects, including successful digitization of Annual Review of Balances and implementation of SAKSHAM & SAMAR-SETU initiatives.
Three publications were released: Comprehensive Statistical Handbook on Defence Expenditure (COSHE) 2026, Raksha Lekha Bharati, and the Market Intelligence Report 2025-2026. A film showcasing the success of the System for Pension Administration (Raksha), SPARSH, was also screened.
Senior officials in attendance included Controller General of Defence Accounts Smt Alka Nangia Arora, Chief of Defence Staff General NS Raja Subramani, Chief of Naval Staff Admiral Krishna Swaminathan, Chief of Army Staff General Dhiraj Seth, Defence Secretary Shri Rajesh Kumar Singh, Secretary (Defence Finance) Shri Vishvajit Sahay, and Vice Chief of Air Staff Air Marshal Ashutosh Dixit.