On Saturday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi took a flight on the Tejas aircraft in Bengaluru, Karnataka. "Flying in Tejas today, I can say with immense pride that due to our hard work and dedication, we are no less than anyone in the world in the field of self-reliance," Modi wrote in a post on X. Best wishes to the Indian Air Force, DRDO, and HAL, as well as all Indians."

"Successfully completed a sortie on the Tejas," Modi added. The experience was extremely rewarding, reinforcing my belief in our country's indigenous talents and instilling in me a fresh feeling of pride and excitement about our national potential."

Modi will also inspect and visit their manufacturing facilities, including the Tejas jet plant, according to ANI. The Indian Air Force has awarded a contract to the state-owned HAL to purchase 12 upgraded Su-30MKI fighter jets.

"Recently, a tender has been issued to the HAL for buying the 12 Su-30MKI fighters, which will be manufactured in India by the HAL in partnership with the Russian original equipment manufacturers," a source in the military industry informed ANI. "The public sector company is expected to respond to the tender by next month with details of the project along with other details," the sources said.

The head of DRDO, Dr Samir V Kamat said, "In a significant boost to India's defense sector, the engines for the LCA Mark 2 and the first two squadrons of the indigenous Advanced Medium Combat Aircraft (AMCA) will be domestically produced."

"The engines of LCA Mark 2 and the first two squadrons of the indigenous Advanced Medium Combat Aircraft would be produced within the country together by American GE and Hindustan Aeronautics Limited as all the clearances have been received from the US," the director general of the DRDO told ANI.

Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) and General Electric (GE) of the United States want to work together to manufacture these engines in India.