Rajnath Singh’s Day in the Sun
Air Chief Marshal A.P. Singh’s flight in LCA-Mk1 A steals the thunder
Ghazala Wahab
Yelahanka: Staking his command, name and reputation, the chief of air staff, Air Chief Marshal A.P. Singh personally carried out the flypast in LCA-Mk1 A during the inauguration of Aero India 2025. If this was the marketing coup for the beleaguered Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) on the opening day of the Show, the previous day was even better for India’s premier aviation company, given the ignominy of having all its ALH Dhruv helicopters (total 330) grounded following a series of air accidents.
On February 9, both ACM Singh and his army counterpart, General Upendra Dwivedi flew the trainer version of the LCA in Bengaluru, reposing their faith in the made in India fighter, not only for the Indian Air Force (IAF) pilots, but also for possible export customers, some of whom were invited to the show by the government of India. There couldn’t have been a higher level of marketing. Finally, Aero India has risen to it real objective—showcasing Indian ware to the world as a seller, instead of a buyer.
Defence minister Rajnath Singh, who inaugurated the show in the absence of the Prime Minister, and took the solitary spot on the tarmac as PM Narendra Modi had done in 2023, said as much in his opening remarks. According to him, until the coming to power of Prime Minister Modi, the Indian defence industry was seen only as a national security requirement. However, the present government elevated the domestic defence industry to the status of a defence industrial complex, combining defence public sector undertakings (DPSUs) and the private sector. “Not only did our government recognise the importance of the defence sector, but it also regarded it as a top economic sector,” he said. “This is evident from the consistent increase in the defence budget year after year,” Singh added.
To further emphasise his point, Singh gave the example of corporatisation of the Ordnance Factories which he said has increased their efficiencies. Therefore, “India has taken a giant leap in innovation and technology development,” he said, adding that all these efforts have led the total turnover of the Indian defence industries to touch Rs 1.25 lakh crore.
Fresh from a holy dip at the Mahakumbh in Prayagraj, Singh likened Aero India to the religious congregation. He said that while the Mahakumbh at Prayagraj is about inner strength, the one at Yelahanka is about outer strength. While the former leads to spiritual cleansing, the latter leads to physical resilience, and so on. Carried away by the comparison, Singh spent the next few minutes describing the two events in the most florid of metaphors.
Concluding his address, Singh alluded to India’s non-aggressive past and the future peaceful rise. However, he qualified this with the assertion that peace can only be build on the foundation of strength. Hence, India needs to be militarily strong to enforce peace. And towards this end, his ministry has declared 2025 as the year of reform, for which both the DPSUs and the Services will work in close coordination.
Speaking before him, the deputy chief minister of Karnataka, D.K. Shivakumar, underscored the centrality of Bengaluru to India’s defence and aerospace sector, to which his government continues to contribute. According to him, over 60 per cent of all aerospace and defence manufacturing happens in Karnataka, employing over 1,50,000 lakh people. Shivakumar added the make in Karnataka twist to the make in India pitch.
Whether made in Karnataka or made in India, Aero India continues to fail on administrative parameters with infrastructure unable to withstand even the first day of the show. More on this tomorrow.