PM Modi takes sortie on Tejas

Bengaluru: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday undertook a sortie on the Tejas aircraft, and said the experience has bolstered his confidence in the country’s indigenous capabilities.

Taking to social media platform X, the PM said, “Successfully completed a sortie on the Tejas. The experience was incredibly enriching, significantly bolstering my confidence in our country’s indigenous capabilities, and leaving me with a renewed sense of pride and optimism about our national potential.”

“Flying in Tejas today, I can say with immense pride that due to our hard work and dedication, we are no less than anyone in the world in the field of self-reliance.

Heartiest congratulations to the Indian Air Force, DRDO and HAL as well as all Indians,” he added. Modi arrived in the city on Saturday and visited Defence PSU Hindustan Aeronautics Limited to review the ongoing work at its manufacturing facilities, officials said.

The Prime Minister has been pushing for indigenous production of defence products and highlighting how his government has boosted their manufacturing in India and also their exports. Several countries have evinced interest in buying Tejas, a light combat aircraft, and US defence giant GE Aerospace had inked a pact with HAL to jointly produce engines for the Mk-II-Tejas during the Prime Minister’s recent state visit to the US.

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh noted in April this year that India’s defence exports have reached an all-time high of Rs 15,920 crore in 2022-2023. It is a remarkable achievement for the country, he had said.