TEJAS GETS WINGS

THE INDIAN GOVERNMENT finally walked the talk on supporting the indigenous defence industry when the Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS) on January 13 cleared the purchase of 83 indigenously designed and developed Tejas Mark-1A Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) worth Rs 48,000 crore. A formal contract, among the largest placed with the Indian defence industry, is likely to be inked between the state-owned Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd (HAL) and the Indian Air Force (IAF) at the biannual Aero India air show in Bengaluru this year. The first jets will start rolling out in three years. They will be an advanced version of the Tejas Mark-1 that made its maiden flight exactly two decades ago.

Behind this long-delayed fighter aircraft project is the story of a rare political foresight that could lead to the creation of an indigenous aircraft ecosystem in the country. The IAF, too, has finally come on board to back the programme. In 2017, a presentation to the government by the then IAF chief,