Bengaluru. With immense potential for the industrial growth of defence and aerospace (both civil and military) and the imperative need for meeting the financial needs for mega aviation projects in India, it is important to set up an organisation like Indian Defence Finance Corporation (IDFC) on the lines of Indian Railway Finance Corporation, IRFC, said Dr. RK Tyagi, Chairman of Aeronautical Society of India (AeSI) and former Chairman, HAL.

“With Defence Corridors planned in Tamil Nadu and U.P. as also other initiatives of the Government, opportunities will abound in these sectors and we will need more money than ever”, he said at a seminar on ‘Energising Indigenisation in Aerospace and Defence’ organised by AeSI and the Society of Indian Technologies and Industries (SIATI) here.

On civilian front, India will need at least additional 1000 aircraft which means the country would be buying two aircraft per week in next few years and Indian industries must take advantage of such a situation by developing indigenous civil aircraft to ensure success of Government’s Regional Connectivity Schemes like UDAN, he said.

“The future belongs to technology and the use of Artificial Intelligence and Robots will be more pronounced”, Tyagi said.

CEO (Bangalore Complex, HAL) Shekhar Srivastava pointed out that material cost incurred drives up the cost of indigenous Indian products especially when one is dependent on foreign OEMs thus making the finished products unviable. It is therefore important that all stakeholders come together and find solutions for any indigenisation process to succeed, he said.

The day-long seminar discussed a wide range of subjects ranging from indigenisation plan of Indian Air Force, Navy and Army and opportunities for industry, ISRO model of sustainable supply chain and make-in-India plan for vendor development.