New warfare technologies have introduced an element of urgency to observe and act on a new approach to the capability development roadmap. That is about the national thrust on R&D in military technologies. The military needs to sharpen its readiness in advanced technology, emerging technology, nuclear, cyber, space, and artificial intelligence.

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh has called upon the private sector to move forward from 'participation' to 'taking the lead' in the defence sector, assuring the Government's full support to make India an innovation & technology hub and one of the strongest countries in the world. He was addressing scientists, industry leaders, academia, startups, MSMEs and young entrepreneurs during Twaral, a DRDO-Industry Workshop on Defence Technology Acceleration organised at DRDO Bhawan in New Delhi.

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh called upon the private sector to transition from participation to leadership in the defence sector, assuring government support to make India an innovation hub and a global powerhouse.

The session begins with Manish Kumar Jha, Defence Editor, on “Self-Reliance in Defence Technology and Manufacturing through Innovation, and R&D involving all stakeholders” with distinguished and eminent panellists like Air Marshal Tejinder Singh, DCAS, Indian Air Force, Rear Admiral Sanjay Adhana, ACOM (MoD), Neelesh Tungar, President, Bharat Forge & CEO, Kalyani Strategic Systems, Shankaraih Mada, Associate Director, ADA (Aeronautical Development Agency) and Jyoti Goda, Managing Director, Tejase Aerosense.

In response to the question of “What is needed for self-reliance in manufacturing advanced technology in India: design and development?”, M.Z. Siddique, Former DS, and Director General (Aero) and Distinguished Scientist said, “If you truly look at the statistics in terms of the kind of R&D spend as a country today, what we are doing, is about 0.65 per cent of the gross domestic product. You talk in terms of the gross domestic expenditure on R&D. The number is quite low and the ranking is quite low as you compare with other countries, South Korea for example, is close to about 4.67 per cent which is the highest to spend in terms of R&D as a percentage of the gross domestic product. So, we need to truly build in that kind of an ecosystem, having the funds, doing meaningful R&D. Cutting Edge R&D is going to be a distant dream.”

Then, what is the outlook for Indian defence OEMs, and what is needed to break boundaries in building new tech involving all stakeholders? How can ecosystems be developed to achieve our goal in 2047? Siddique raised another crucial point to have a very clear definition, as to what we are trying to do and whether we have defined self-reliance currently. “Are we talking about self-reliance and self-sufficiency, or are we talking about sovereignty? These are certain questions we need to address to ourselves, do some soul-searching and answer them. So, the point is to identify those Technologies which will give us that kind of a leadership position,” Siddique said.

Replying to what is the status of Tejas Mk1A, engine challenges (GE 404) in terms of production and delivery, Deputy Chief of the Air Staff Air Marshal Tejinder Singh put forth his perspectives, “Defence goods are competitive goods. It is not enough for them to work correctly. They have to work better than what your adversity has got. So, in that case, we need to be expeditious in technology development.” He further elaborated, “I just came to Bangalore where I had the opportunity to visit various entities. I spend a lot of time with Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL), DRDO, the Aeronautical Development Agency (ADA), and the Centre for Airborne Systems (CABS). I think one gets a very good feeling and we are very proud of the work that is being done in terms of getting cutting-edge Technologies. DG (Aero) is doing some phenomenal work in indigenising a lot of competencies which will reduce our dependence. But when it comes to Tejas, the General Electric 404 engine, we must not forget our history. We had developed the HF-24 Marut aircraft. It was a success for HAL.”

Air Marshal Tejinder Singh stressed the urgent need for self-reliance in aero-engine development, calling it a "watershed moment" for India's defence industry, as dependency on foreign engines continues to hinder progress.

“But again, the stumbling block was the aero-engine. Because we were dependent on them. Last month, we had to sign a contract for 240 engines for the Su-30 MKI. I think the watershed moment of our defence industry would be If we could make our engine,” he spoke. DCAS finally added, “I think this unique capability will keep coming in the way of our progress. We have done very well in integrating, in upgrading, in fact, in Indian Air Force we feel very proud that we have upgraded all our platforms.”

On the airborne systems especially radar, DCAS praised the work by DRDO and said, “Extraordinary good work, which has been done by CABS in integrating the airborne systems the NETRA radar, and much more capability exists. We are already ready, but the stumbling block once again, comes with having a wide-body aircraft or a large aircraft for this part.” “So, I feel, this problem of Tejas is a matter of contract and it will get resolved. But again, it highlights the shortcoming of not having the capability to make your engine,” he sums up.

So, what are the futuristic technologies in aerospace that IAF is looking out for and how indigenous are those say AMCA, radars? DCAS points out that that thrust on aero-engine should be our top priority. “We should put all our efforts into being self-reliant on an aero-engine. If we can do that, thereafter with that capacity and technologies, we can overcome a lot of work. I think you'll be able to make an aircraft. We'll be able to make the control systems. We make all the accessories which are required, we'll be able to integrate the weapons. All those technologies we have either mastered or we have the capacities within us,” he emphasised.

The IAF is also gearing up for space warfare. And then what is needed to boost up capabilities in this evolving multi-domain? The deliberation on this centred around the integrated air defence systems and what is the futuristic roadmap in terms of advanced weapons? Additionally, how can we design & develop & manufacture emerging tech/systems like Hale/ Male drones, and aero-engine in India under “Make in India”?

India's quest for indigenous aero-engine capabilities, including high-thrust engines, requires national missions, global collaboration, and stringent technology transfer agreements to achieve self-reliance.

Manish Jha raised pertinent questions as after the milestone of Tejas Mk1, India has greater ambitions from Tejas 2 to AMCA. How ADA is incorporating critical design, stealth, and autonomous elements in our quest for 5th or 5+generation fighter jets? What about the budgetary constraint and timeline? Shankaraih Mada, a leading aerospace scientist at Aeronautical Development Agency (ADA), pointed out the elements of upgraded Tejas, and clarified, “MK1A is the derivative of MK1 except for a few changes. The additional sensors are coming. So as DCAS is saying, more worries are the numbers to produce and the maintainability. So, we are working towards better maintainability and product support.”

“So, we are working with HAL closely and we are supporting each other. So, the numbers, of course, come with the production facility. What is available there? But there are certain build issues which arise and also are required to be worked upon. We are closely associated and then we are putting our best efforts into that,” he adds.

The quest for an indigenous aero-engine remains a challenge despite the initial success of the Kaveri engine. Can it be a national mission? What is needed to achieve a higher thrust of 110KN engine? How far have we succeeded in addressing the core tech, materials, and testing capabilities? Worldwide there is the trend for global collaboration to achieve advancements in terms of aerospace technology. How ADA is looking at such collaborations? We need to have a collaborative research code, design code, development, joining plans together with the foreign engine house with a strict know-how and know why coming into the country IP residing inside the country. That is the crux and path for self-reliance in advanced tech.

Manish Kumar Jha is a Consulting & Contributing Editor for SP's Aviation, SP's Land Forces and SP's Naval Forces and a security expert. He writes on national security, military technology, strategic affairs & policies.