The Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS) chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday approved the largest indigenous defence procurement deal worth about Rs 48,000 crore to strengthen IAF’s fleet of homegrown fighter jet ‘LCA-Tejas’. This deal will be a game-changer for self-reliance in Indian defence manufacturing, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh said in a tweet today. The minister said LCA-Tejas will be the backbone of the IAF fighter fleet in years to come. LCA-Tejas incorporates a large number of new technologies many of which were never attempted in India, he said, adding that the indigenous content of LCA-Tejas is 0% in Mk1A variant which will be enhanced to 60%.The HAL has already set-up second line manufacturing facilities at its Nasik and Bengaluru Divisions. Equipped with the augmented infrastructure the HAL will steer LCA-Mk1A production for timely deliveries to the IAF, Rajnath said. He said the decision will considerably expand the current LCA ecosystem and help in creating new job opportunities. HAL follows a system integrator model in LCA Mk1A program and acts as an umbrella organisation, fostering manufacturing & design capabilities in private industry, he added. The LCA-Tejas programme would act as a catalyst for transforming the indian aerospace manufacturing ecosystem into a vibrant Atmanirbhar-self-sustaining ecosystem. I thank the Prime Minister Shri @narendramodi for this historic decision taken by the CCS today, Singh said in a series of tweets.
