Big Relief For Defence, Drone Firms; India Invokes Force Majeure Amid West Asia War

New Delhi: The Centre has allowed companies hit by the West Asia conflict to seek protection under the "force majeure" clause in government contracts, giving a major breather to sectors such as defence and drone manufacturing.Force majeure is a legal provision that excuses a company from meeting contractual deadlines when extraordinary events - such as war, natural disasters, or other unforeseen crises - make normal operations impossible.The Finance Ministry said the ongoing conflict in West Asia, triggered by the US-Israeli strikes on Iran on February 28, can be treated as a war-like situation for government contracts.Also Read: Conflict on Iran War Costs! $25B or $100B What’s the Actual Toll on US & Is Pentagon Lying?“In cases where disruptions

arising from the prevailing West Asia situation have directly affected, or consequentially impacted contractual obligations (for goods and services contracts, construction/ works contracts with Government Agencies), the procuring entities may invoke Force Majeure,” the Finance Ministry said in its order.This means affected companies can avoid penalties if they miss delivery deadlines because of supply chain disruptions linked to the conflict.Under the relief package, government agencies can grant delivery extensions of two to four months. However, this will only apply to companies that were meeting their obligations as of February 27. Each request will be reviewed individually.The decision is particularly important for defence and drone manufacturers, many of whom depend heavily on imported components from Israel and other global suppliers.According to a report in Economic Times, citing industry sources, the supplies from Israel have been severely disrupted, while delays at cargo hubs in the UAE have further slowed shipments from other countries.Since most defence contracts are with government agencies, the industry had been seeking this relief for months.“Over the past few months, the industry has been dealing with component shortages, logistics delays and tighter export controls, all of which are beyond the control of domestic manufacturers but directly affecting delivery timelines,” said Smit Shah, president of the Drone Federation of India.Companies warn that the disruption may last much longer than four months. Demand has piled up, cargo routes remain congested, and several suppliers have sharply raised prices.According to industry executives, delivery timelines for critical components such as computing modules and cameras have doubled from three months to six months in some cases. Prices have also surged dramatically.Edge computing modules - specialised processors used in drones and other advanced equipment - have become 215% more expensive. Communication equipment prices have risen by around 50%, while shortages of memory chips continue to affect production.