40 C-295 transport aircraft to be made in Vadodara by Tata Consortium and Airbus Defence
Vadodara: Prime Minister Narendra Modi today laid the foundation stone of the country’s first aircraft manufacturing facility in the private sector here today. The facility will manufacture C-295 aircraft for the Indian Air Force (IAF) through collaboration between Tata Advanced Systems Limited and Airbus Defence and Space S.A., Spain.
This is the first project of its kind in which a military aircraft will be manufactured in India by a private company. The total cost of the project is Rs 21,935 crore. The aircraft can be used for civilian purposes as well. The Prime Minister noted the fact that more than 100 MSMEs are also associated with the project.
Modi said it is a “big step” in the direction of making India the manufacturing hub of the world and that he can foresee that India will soon be manufacturing big passenger aircraft. Highlighting the increased demand for passenger and cargo aircraft, he stated that India will need more than 2000 aircraft in the next 15 years.
The Prime Minister added that the manufacturing facility has the power to transform the country’s defence and transport sector. He pointed out that it is for the first time that this big investment is taking place in the Indian Defence sector. Transport aircraft, manufactured at the facility, will not only strengthen the Armed Forces but also help in developing a new ecosystem of aircraft manufacturing. “Vadodara, which is famous as a cultural and education centre, will develop a new identity as an aviation sector hub,” he said. He said the promise of ‘Make in India, Make for the World’ will gain new push as the project will be able to take orders for export to other countries in the future.
Modi informed that more than $3 billion has been invested in the aerospace sector alone. He noted that post-2014, investment in this sector grew five times of what was invested during the year 2000 to 2014. He said that in the coming years, the defence and aerospace sectors would be the crucial pillars of the ‘Aatmanirbhar Bharat’ campaign. “We aim to scale our defence manufacturing beyond $25 billion by 2025. Our defence exports will also exceed $5 billion,” he added.
The Prime Minister stated that the defence corridors being developed in Uttar Pradesh and Tamil Nadu will immensely help in scaling up this sector. He also praised the Ministry of Defence and the Government of Gujarat for organising the biggest-ever DefExpo in Gandhinagar recently. He underlined that all the equipment and technologies displayed in the DefExpo were made in India. “The reflection of Project C-295 will also be visible to us in the DefExpo of the coming years,” he added.
Commenting on the fast-evolving aviation sector, Modi said India was about to enter among the top three countries in the world with regard to air traffic. UDAN scheme is helping in turning many commuters into air travellers, he said.
– global bihari bureau
