United Service Institution of India

What United Service Institution of India does

The United Service Institution of India (USI), founded in 1870 in Simla by Colonel (later Major General) Sir Charles MacGregor, is India's oldest defence and security think tank, operating as a registered society under the Societies Registration Act. Governed by an elected Council with senior defence officers of Vice Chief rank serving ex-officio, USI serves serving and retired officers of the Indian Armed Forces, civilian scholars, and government policymakers through a portfolio of professional military education, strategic research, publications, and defence discourse. The institution has grown from 215 founding members to over 15,000 members, and operates seven specialized research centres covering strategic studies and simulation (CS3), military history and conflict studies (CMHCS), emerging technologies and Atma Nirbhar Bharat (CETANB), UN and humanitarian studies (CUNHS), professional military education (CPME), publications and library (CP&L), and administration (CADM).

USI's core offerings include Asia's oldest defence journal (published since 1871), the Strategic Year Book, monographs, occasional papers, and a fortnightly newsletter, alongside correspondence and contact programmes preparing officers for Defence Services Staff College (DSSC), Defence Services Technical Staff Course (DSTSC), and Army Part B/D promotion examinations. The institution's library holds over 72,000 books and 100+ journals, including rare volumes dating back 400 years, and chairs of excellence (including Admiral RD Katari, General Bipin Rawat, MEA, and Chhatrapati Shivaji chairs) anchor its research mandate. Professional military education reaches over 3,000 officers annually, with USI students securing 75% of DSSC/DSTSC/ALMC & ISC seats in 2024 (14 of 20 competitive DSSC Army vacancies).

USI's revenue model rests on five streams: annual membership fees from over 15,000 members, course fees from professional military education programmes, publication sales, venue bookings of its auditorium and seminar rooms, and government support from entities including the NSCS, MoD, MEA, DRDO, DMA, HQ IDS, and the three Service Headquarters as articulated in Vision 2030. The institution employs 101–250 staff and faculty (comprising active and retired senior military officers across all three services) and delivers programmes through direct campus engagement in New Delhi, online self-serve enrollment, partnerships with service headquarters and training establishments, and Track 1.5 international dialogues with foreign defence establishments.

Name

United Service Institution of India

Legal name

United Service Institution of India

Website

https://usiofindia.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1870

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

Founded in 1870, the United Service Institution of India is India's oldest defence think tank, serving over 15,000 members and 3,000+ officers annually through professional military education, strategic research, publications, and tri-service defence discourse across seven specialized research centres.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Defence Research and Professional Military Education

NAICS

National Security (928110), International Affairs (92812), Scientific Research and Development Services (5417)

SIC

International Affairs (9721)

akta.pro primary industry

Military Operations & Force Readiness (BPAIAHAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Defense R&D, Test, Evaluation & Innovation (BPAIAHAC), Command & Staff Colleges (Intermediate-Level Education) (EDAHAOAD), Military Graduate & Postgraduate Institutions (STEM/Defense Research) (EDAHAOAE)

Keywords

• Defence think tank
• Professional military education
• Strategic studies research
• Defence publications
• Military history studies

Headquarters

HQ city

New Delhi

HQ country

India

HQ region

Asia

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Membership Fees: Annual membership fees from over 15,000 members providing access to publications, library resources, and events
2. Professional Military Education Courses: Correspondence courses and contact programs for DSSC, DSTSC, Army Part B and D, Navy PME, and IAF courses. Over 3,000 officers benefit annually from these courses.
3. Publications Sales: Sale of Strategic Year Books, books, monographs, occasional papers, journals, and strategic perspectives
4. Venue Booking: Rental of auditorium and seminar rooms for events and conferences
5. Government Support: Financial support from various government sources including NSCS, MoD, MEA, DRDO, DMA, HQ IDS, and Service Headquarters as outlined in Vision 2030

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

USI is a registered society and premier defence think tank that delivers professional military education courses (DSSC, DSTSC, Navy PME, IAF DSSC, Part B/D promotion exams), publishes defence and strategic journals/books/monographs, conducts essay competitions and memorial lectures, and operates research centres covering strategic studies, military history, emerging technologies, and UN humanitarian studies. It serves over 15,000 members from the Indian Armed Forces, civilian scholars, and government policymakers.

Product overview

The United Service Institution of India operates as a premier defence think tank offering a comprehensive portfolio of products and services. Its core offerings include publications (USI Journal - Asia's oldest defence journal, Strategic Year Book, Monographs, Occasional Papers, Strategic Perspectives, Fortnightly First newsletter), essay competitions (Gold Medal Essay Competition since 1870, War Wounded Foundation Joint Essay Competition, USI-Chief of Air Staff Essay Competition, Lt Gen SL Menezes Memorial Essay Competition, Lt Gen PS Bhagat Memorial Essay Competition), and professional military education courses (DSSC/DSTSC correspondence and contact programmes, Navy PME courses, IAF DSSC courses, Part B/D promotion exam preparation, MA in International Conflict Studies). The institution operates seven specialized research centres: Centre for Strategic Studies and Simulation (CS3) for net assessment and strategic gaming, Centre for Military History and Conflict Studies (CMHCS) for military heritage, Centre for Emerging Technologies for Atma Nirbhar Bharat (CETANB) with its Cyber Centre of Excellence, Centre for Professional Military Education (CPME) for career progression courses, Centre for United Nations and Humanitarian Studies (CUNHS), Centre for Publications & Library (CP&L) housing 72,000+ books, and Centre for Administration (CADM). Additional offerings include Chairs of Excellence for sponsored research, memorial lectures series, Military Museum Curator Course, internship programmes, and USI Library as a knowledge resource. The institution also provides venue booking services through its auditorium and seminar rooms.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• USI Journal
• Strategic Year Book
• Monographs
• Occasional Papers
• Strategic Perspectives
• Fortnightly First Newsletter
• USI Gold Medal Essay Competition
• DSSC/DSTSC Correspondence Courses
• DSSC Contact Programme
• Paper 1 Professional Management Examination (PME) Navy Course
• DSSC Course (IAF)
• Part B and Part D Courses
• MA in International Conflict Studies
• Centre for Strategic Studies and Simulation (CS3)
• Centre for Military History and Conflict Studies (CMHCS)
• Centre for Emerging Technologies for Atma Nirbhar Bharat (CETANB)
• Centre for Professional Military Education (CPME)
• Centre for United Nations and Humanitarian Studies (CUNHS)
• Centre for Publications & Library (CP&L)
• Cyber Centre of Excellence
• Military Museum Curator Course
• USI Library
• Internship Programme
• Memorial Lectures Series
• Strategic Games and Scenario Exercises

Quantifiable outcome

• 75% of total DSSC/DSTSC/ALMC & ISC seats secured by USI students in 2024
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers6 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Eleven partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Indian Council of World Affairs (ICWA)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 11 April 2023Joint international conferences on diplomatic dimensions of military history including Indian Armed Forces in France and Flanders during WWI and WWII. Collaboration includes conferences on military heritage and strategic studies.
• European Union / ESIWA (Enhancing Security Cooperation In and With Asia)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 23 March 2023Joint seminars on Women, Peace and Security in Peacekeeping Operations. Participation by EU member state ambassadors including Latvia, Lithuania, Ireland, and Malta.
• Higher School of Economics (HSE), MoscowminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 3 March 2023MoU for collaboration in geopolitics, India-Russia bilateral relations, geoeconomics, and strategic security cooperation including climate change, defence production, and cybersecurity.
• Embassy of Uzbekistan in New DelhiminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 2 March 2023Interaction on bilateral relations, regional security, connectivity issues, and Afghanistan situation. Discussed INSTC project and cooperation opportunities.
• War Wounded FoundationcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2021Joint essay competition organized annually since 2021 focusing on war, national security, and welfare of military personnel injured in line of duty. Competition open to serving/retired armed forces officers and civilian scholars. Winning essays published in USI Journal with cash prizes of Rs 15,000 and Rs 10,000.
• Challenges ForumminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerJoint annual forum on peacekeeping and security challenges conducted at USI premises.
• William & Mary's Global Scholars ProgramminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerVisits by student delegations from William & Mary's Global Scholars Program for educational interactions at USI.
• Institute for Defence International Relations (IDIR), VietnamminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerBilateral Track 1.5 dialogue with Vietnamese defence research institute for strategic discussions.
• Geneva Centre for Security Policy (GCSP)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration on UN project with round table discussions on security policy.
• India Korea Centre for Research and Innovation (IKCRI) and Korean EmbassyminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerMeetings with IKCRI and Korean Embassy attachés including defence, science & technology representatives.
• China Institute for International Strategic Studies (CIISS)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerUSI delegation visits to China including Xiangshan Forum and bilateral exchanges.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves2 records

Direct peers

• Centre for Air Power Studies (CAPS): New Delhi-based think tank focused on air power and strategic studies. Service-specific in orientation, comparable in PME-style programming, publication cadence, and retired-officer faculty model. Several USI faculty also serve as CAPS Senior Fellows.
• Institute of Peace and Conflict Studies (IPCS): New Delhi-based think tank focused on strategic, nuclear, and security studies. Directly comparable in research output, policy-paper series, and target audience of officers, scholars, and policymakers in India.
• Observer Research Foundation (ORF): One of India's largest think tanks with a substantial defence and strategic studies vertical. Competes with USI for government research grants, policy advisory mandates, and media visibility in the security discourse.
• National Maritime Foundation (NMF): Indian Navy-affiliated maritime security think tank publishing research on Indo-Pacific, sea-lane security, and naval doctrine. Increasingly comparable as USI expands under its first naval Director-General, and a peer for tri-service and maritime strategic studies.
• Vivekananda International Foundation: New Delhi-based national security and strategic studies think tank that directly competes with USI for government-sponsored defence research, retired-military faculty, and policy-maker engagement in India. Overlapping mandate on defence, strategic, and foreign-policy studies makes it the closest domestic peer.
• Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses (IDSA): India's MoD-administered defence think tank (now Manohar Parrikar Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses) focused on strategic studies, defence policy, and international security. Directly comparable in mission, publications portfolio, and target audience of officers and policymakers.
• Centre for Policy Research (CPR): India-based public-policy think tank with a significant defence and foreign-policy vertical. Competes with USI for government commissions, policy-paper commissions, and academic-policy engagement in New Delhi.
• Royal United Services Institute (RUSI): The UK's oldest defence and security think tank (founded 1831), with a global membership, defence journal, and library. Closest international analogue to USI in mission, governance model (independent institute with government ties), and product mix (publications, lectures, research).

Broad incumbents

• International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS): Global think tank publishing The Military Balance and Strategic Survey, hosting the Shangri-La Dialogue. Larger, more international, and commercial in orientation than USI, but directly comparable in strategic-studies research and policy forum offerings.
• Carnegie Endowment for International Peace: Global think tank with substantial Asia and security programmes including publications, fellowships, and policy convenings. Larger and broader in scope than USI but provides a benchmark for institutional scale and international engagement in defence/foreign policy.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/USIofIndia
• YouTubeyoutube.com/@usiofindia
• Facebookfacebook.com/usiofindia
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/united-service-institution-of-india
• Instagraminstagram.com/usiofindia

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles5 records

Subsidiaries7 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about United Service Institution of India