IAF INDIGENISATION REALISTIC TARGETS ARE NEEDED

India cannot and must not expect complete indigenisation. The tendency to view Indian efforts in terms of indigenous content is singularly unhelpful. While increasing indigenization is necessary, economies of scale, costs, and realistic appraisal of the level of technology transfer have to be taken into consideration, argues SANJAY BADRI MAHARAJ

- SANJAY BADRI MAHARAJ

HAL has invested enormous efforts into phased indigenisation of license-manufactured products. This has come at a considerable cost, but it has meant that license-production in India is not mere assembly but involves a progressive increase in indigenous content. HAL has produced hundreds of combat aircraft and helicopters under license and has achieved a high degree of indigenisation in these projects.

HAL has also consistently failed to achieve indigenisation targets set for the Su-30MKI programme with raw material production of the aircraft beginning later than expected and even now the import content by value for the type is at 40 per cent. Indigenisation levels have been at best modest for HAL’s license-manufactured products with even such long-produced items such as the BAE Hawk and the Dornier Do-228 having a disproportionate import content by value – 60 per cent in the case of the Do-228 and 58 per cent in the case of the Hawk. Whether this was due to poor contract negotiation or is a failing of HAL is debatable but it is undeniable that HAL’s licensed produced aircraft have a relatively high import content by value which in part contributes to their high cost compared to direct imports.