Many countries have shown interest in procuring indigenous fighter Tejas Light Combat Aircraft, Indian Defence Minister Rajnath Singh said on Tuesday while inaugurating the third production line for the jet in Bengaluru. The unit was inaugurated a day before the Aero India show.

 Singh said that under the 'Aatmanirbhar Bharat Abhiyan' (Self-Reliant Inda Campaign), the country is looking forward to increasing its defence manufacturing capabilities. "India cannot remain dependent on other countries for its defence," he said.

"Tejas is not only indigenous, but it is also better than its foreign equivalents on several parameters and also comparatively cheaper. Many countries have shown interest in Tejas. India will achieve the target of Rs 1.75 lakh crores in the field of defence manufacturing in few years," he said in a tweet.

Last month, the Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS), the highest decision-making body for security issues headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, approved the purchase of 83 Tejas fighter jets at a cost of Rs 48,000 crore, including infrastructure, for the Indian Air Force.

Out of the 83, India's Hindustan Aeronautics LImited (HAL) is all set to manufacture 73 Mark 1-A, the new variant of the Tejas which will be more potent and effective than the previous Mark 1, 10 will be Mark 1 trainers.

The LCA-Tejas will be the backbone of the IAF fighter fleet in the years to come. LCA-Tejas incorporates a large number of new technologies many of which were never attempted in India. The Light Combat Aircraft Tejas is indigenously designed by the Aircraft Development Agency (ADA) under the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and manufactured by Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL).

(IANS)