New Delhi [India], June 20 (ANI): Emphasising the importance of private sector involvement in the defence aviation industry, Defence Secretary Rajesh Kumar Singh said on Friday that the production of India's fifth-generation fighter jet, the Advanced Medium Combat Aircraft (AMCA), will be open to private companies.

In an exclusive interview with ANI, Defence Secretary Rajesh Kumar Singh underscored the need for at least two aircraft manufacturers in India. He noted that the presence of private sector players would foster healthy competition, ultimately benefiting the country's public sector aerospace company, Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL).

'We've not reached a stage where I can talk about anything specific being done. What I can talk about is that our fifth-generation fighter, which will be the AMCA...We've kept it open for the public and private sectors for the first time. The intent is that we need to have at least two aircraft manufacturers in the country, if not more. And once that gets some traction, we will hopefully move towards self-reliance in this critical area. For the AMCA, the timeline is about eight years,' Singh said.

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh had last month approved the Advanced Medium Combat Aircraft (AMCA) Programme Execution Model.

The Execution Model approach provides equal opportunities to both the private and public sectors on a competitive basis. They can bid either independently, as a joint venture, or as a consortium. The entity or bidder should be an Indian company that is compliant with the laws and regulations of the country.

The Defence Secretary said HAL will gain from healthy competition.

'There was a committee headed by me, which essentially sort of gave the report that we need to open it up for the entire manufacturing ecosystem of the country. Whoever wants to come in should come in and... HAL will also gain from healthy competition of this type,' he said.

Answering a query, he said HAL has the first-mover advantage and is the only military aircraft maker in the country, and there is a need to bring some competition.

'I would say to any premature criticism of HAL. HAL has its own constraints. I mean, the LCA production line has not stabilised, largely because of the delays in engine supplies from the US. But the fact is that they also have their order books full. I think that they already have six years of orders with them. They have their hands full as well. And therefore, I mean, you can't explicitly bar anybody from competing, particularly in the public sector. But you would like to create a level-playing field where others can also bid. They have the first-mover advantage. They are the only military aircraft maker in the country. So they will always have that advantage. But the intent is to bring in some competition, because monopolies are never good. For even a public sector monopoly,' Singh said.

The Defence Secretary stated that India's reliance on Russian defence equipment has declined compared to the past. He also noted that the country now imports defence equipment from a broader range of nations, including Israel, France, and the United States.

He pointed out that ongoing geopolitical tensions and global conflicts have impacted the timely delivery of defence equipment.

'Russians are one of our leading suppliers. I think the percentage would have come down...maybe 40 per cent or so, from about 65-70 per cent earlier. I mean, it's not just the Ukraine conflict, which, of course, it has affected some supplies from Russia, the prime example being the S-400s, which are delayed, but where we now have a firm schedule; they'll come next year by April, and one by April, one battery by the end of next year,' Singh said.

'Others - I mean, to be very frank, some of our contracts with Israel also got held up because of their issues, the conflict that they have. So yeah, it's probably inevitable. But the fact is that Israel, Russia, and France - these are ours, and increasingly the US also - they are some of our primary sorts of weapon suppliers now. And to some extent, all of them have been affected by the supply chain disruptions that came after COVID and thereafter by the geopolitical conflicts,' Singh said.

On whether India is eyeing American or Russian fifth-generation fighter jets, the Defence Secretary said that the discussions with the countries are not in the formal stage yet. 'I mean, whatever has been discussed has been informal. We don't really have any formal consultations going on on these. Our intent, of course, will have to be to acquire critical technologies through selective foreign purchases,' he added. (ANI)