Nagpur :- National Academy of Defence Production (NADP), Nagpur has been conferred with the prestigious India’s Business Leader of Excellence Award 2025–2026, constituted by Times Aspire, at the National Leadership Awards 2026, held at the Bombay Stock Exchange, Mumbai, on 27 February 2026. The award was received by Shri Mishminder Sharma, Executive Director, NADP, from Mrs. Rupali Chakankar, Chairperson, Maharashtra State Commission for Women, in recognition of NADP’s outstanding business leadership, institutional excellence, and transformative impact on India’s Defence production ecosystem.
This national recognition acknowledges NADP’s remarkable journey from a premier training institution to a strategic enabler of leadership, innovation, and organisational excellence, aligned with India’s vision of Atma Nirbhar Bharat. 
Following the corporatisation of Ordnance Factories and its alignment with Munitions India Limited in 2021, NADP embarked on a phase of accelerated transformation, achieving several national firsts that redefined Defence education and leadership development in the public sector. In 2022–23, the Academy received AICTE approval to launch India’s first two-year residential PGDM (Business Management) exclusively designed for the Defence sector and mentored by IIM Indore, bridging the critical gap between Defence manufacturing expertise and contemporary business leadership.
In recognition of its institutional maturity and governance excellence, NADP was awarded the prestigious “4 Star Utkushta” accreditation by the Capacity Building Commission in 2025, placing it among the top Central Training Institutes in the country. During the same period, the Academy emerged as the largest contributor to the iGOT Karmayogi platform among Defence organisations, extending its learning footprint to nearly five lakh learners nationwide and demonstrating unparalleled reach, scalability, and digital leadership.
NADP’s excellence has also received global and national acclaim through multiple prestigious recognitions, including the International Stevie Award, the Asian Business Excellence Award – Brand of the Year 2024, and the ISTD National Award for Innovative Training Practices 2025.
By 2026, NADP expanded its mandate beyond the public sector to engage with the private Defence industry, delivering specialised leadership and management programmes for organisations such as Adani Defence.
Through sustained innovation, strategic foresight, and an unwavering commitment to excellence, NADP has evolved into a “Corporate University” for the Defence ecosystem, blending technical mastery with ethical leadership and business acumen. Commenting on the achievement, Dr. J. P. Dash, Principal Director, NADP, stated that the true measure of the Academy’s success lies not merely in the number of officers trained, but in the systemic transformation it enables across the military-industrial complex. He noted that the award recognises NADP’s commitment to building the three foundational pillars of Competence, Culture, and Commitment, which are essential for a strong and self-reliant India.
