Indian Air Force Chief Marshal A P Singh issued a stern warning over chronic delays in the country’s defence production and procurement processes, citing the stalled delivery of the Tejas Mk1A fighter jets as a key example. Speaking at the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) Annual Business Summit, he questioned the practice of making promises that remain undeliverable, especially in critical defence projects.
“Many times, we know while signing contracts that those systems will never come. Timelines are a big issue. Not a single project I can think of is completed on time. Why should we promise something that cannot be achieved?” said the Air Chief, in the presence of Defence Minister Rajnath Singh.
Highlighting concerns with the indigenous Light Combat Aircraft programme, Air Chief Marshal Singh noted that none of the 83 Tejas Mk1A jets ordered under a ₹48,000 crore contract with Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) in February 2021 have been delivered, despite deliveries being scheduled to begin in March 2024. He also pointed out that the Tejas Mk2 prototype is yet to roll out and there is still no prototype for India’s next-generation stealth fighter, the Advanced Medium Combat Aircraft (AMCA).
The IAF chief emphasized the need for immediate corrective action, stating, “We have to be now-ready to be future-ready. In 10 years, we will have more output from industry, but what we need today, we need today. We need to quickly get our act together. Wars are won by empowering our forces.”
This is not the first time Air Chief Marshal Singh has publicly expressed frustration over production setbacks. In February 2024, he openly said he was “just not confident” in HAL’s ability to deliver on time, citing a previous promise that 11 Tejas Mk1As would be ready, none of which materialized. In October 2024, he also noted that India had once been ahead of China in defence technology but had since fallen behind due to systemic delays.
His remarks highlight growing concerns within the armed forces about India’s defence preparedness and the need to align industrial output with operational realities under the Atmanirbhar Bharat initiative.
