India, March 9 -- India's arms imports fell 4% between 2016-20 and 2021-25, but the country remains the world's second largest importer of military hardware, accounting for 8.2% of global weapon imports, a Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (Sipri) report said on Monday.

India's arms imports are driven by its tensions with China and Pakistan, said the report on "Trends in International Arms Transfers".

"The drop in imports can be partly attributed to India's growing ability to design and produce its own weapons, although there are often substantial delays in domestic production. However, India's recent orders or planned orders --- including up to 140 combat aircraft from France and 6 submarines from Germany --- indicate it...