Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses, New Delhi his paper examines the defence reforms process in India. It Tbegins by briefly examining previous efforts at defence reforms and the factors that led to the post-Kargil defence reform. Next it analyzes the Kargil Review Committee and its follow up, the Arun Singh Committee and describes some of the debates therein. While examining the implementation of defence reforms it then argues that despite some incremental progress they have failed the vision of their architects. This is primarily due to bureaucratic politics and the unique features of civil-military relations, which can be more accurately described as an “absent dialogue.” The penultimate section describes recent calls for re-visiting the defence reforms process but argues that without political will this is unlikely. The research methodology relies on interviews with key decision-makers, reports of the Parliamentary Standing committee and other secondary sources. Anit Mukherjee, a doctoral candidate at the School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS), Johns Hopkins University, is currently a Research Fellow at the Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses (IDSA), New Delhi. His dissertation focuses on civil military relations in India. He earned his M.A. at SAIS concentrating in South Asia Studies and Strategic Studies. While at university, he has conducted research projects at the United Service Institute of India (USI) and the Brookings Institution. Most recently he worked at RAND as a Summer Associate. Prior to joining SAIS, he was a Major in the Indian Army. He has published in the New York Times, India Review, Wall Street Journal (Asia) and Indian Express, among others. He is an alumnus of the National Defence Academy (NDA), Khadakwasla. IDSA Occasional Paper No. 18 Anit Mukherjee Failing to Deliver Post-Crises Defence Reforms in India, 1998-2010 9 798186 019886 ISBN 81-86019-88-X 9 798186 019886 ISBN 81-86019-88-X