Plain reality and you have no idea how disturbing it is for me, to be on the same side as DRDO and even Ajay Shukla on this regard (although he has other resonings).
Wrong, DRDO officials just stated a few weeks back, that funding of R&D projects was never an issue. In fact the government and even Antony were imo too easy with providing money for the wishes of the forces and the industry. Things like N-LCA or now AMCA, that don't offer any operational gain, but were or would be funded without any issue and when BJP hikes the defence budget to 25%, it also clearly shows that money is not the problem
Partially right, we have the companies, but either do the developments too complicated, or not aimed of efficiency. I agree on the facilities though, but then again, SAMTEL is the best prove that we can do it in India, if we want to and if the commit ourselfs to it.
They have developed know how and experience over the years, that made them to a credibile indigenous alternative to HAL and foreign companies in the avionics field and are improving themselfs now, with JVs that gets them not only production parts but credible input of know how!
Answer this, which company do you believe will gain more for future indigenous developments? Reliance that is aimed to manufacture the wings of Rafale under the JV with Dassault, or Samtel that might provide HMS, IRST electro-optics and MFDs under their JV with Thales?
We all know that Reliance has more money as a company and hopefully starts putting it into indigenous R&D, but from do you really think they will gain much know how for the future and for the benefit of Indian fighter projects, by producing wings?
Samtel has by far less money for R&D, but will gain for sure much more since they have JVs on credible techs and with higher technical gain for the future and that is exactly what JV's, co-development as well as FDI should bring to India, not only money and jobs at the production end (although these are needed as well of course)!
Yes we need privat Indian industry to participate,
but how can the returns be not safe, when India is the biggest defence market even today? They have to take this as a chance and develop and produce more for the Indian requirement, which they didn't so far and that's why the former MoD and DM changed to procurement policies to a forced team up of foreign vendors with Indian counterparts. An excellent decision, which needs to be followed, but not by diverting only minor production to the Indian partners, while the important stuff remains to be developed and build abbroad.
And I am the first one to support that! BUT, then we need even more focus on getting alternatives in the R&D sector and not more alternatives in the production sector only.
I would love to see that TATA would be able to produce the Avro replacement, the additional Pilatus trainers, or even the foreign LUH's, because that frees HAL from too many projects and gives Indian forces and alternative in the aero sector, which we currently simply don't have, because none of the private players so far has invested much in production capabilities for Indian demands, let alone in R&D of the defence aero sector. So as long as they don't start to take Indian defence seriously and see the potential for them selfs, we simply are dependent on DRDO and HAL!
That's why we need a stronger stand and focus on efficiency towards DRDO, HAL and Co and at the same time create new alternatives via Indian or foreign players wrt to R&D and not replacing the one for the other!
I didn't said it's bad, on the contrary it is important! But in a reasonable ammount and with remaining control of the projects and requirements on the Indian side!