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Buying fighter jets from abroad cheaper than manufacturing them at HAL, says Def Min

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Buying fighter jets from abroad cheaper than manufacturing them at HAL, says Def Min

Manufacturing fighter jets at India’s public sector unit Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) is costlier than buying them from the the original equipment manufacturer (OEM) abroad, according to a defence ministry audit, reported The Hindustan Times (HT).

The report comes at a time when there is a raging controversy over Modi government dumping a deal being negotiated with Dassault Aviation of France for 126 Rafale jets, 108 of which were to be made in India by HAL, and going instead for a purchase of 36 fighter jets in fly-away condition with Anil Ambani’s Reliance Defence getting the offset contract.

The department of defence production is studying the document, said an officer aware of the development told HT.

The document, reported HT, says that Su-30MKI – the mainstay fighters of the Indian Air Force (IAF) which is manufactured by HAL under licence from Russia – is about Rs 150 crore costlier than the ones made in Russia.

A Su-30MKI made in Russia cost Rs 269.77 crore whereas one made by HAL in India costs Rs 417.69 crore, almost “Rs 150 crore” more per aircraft, the review said.

Similarly, there is a huge cost difference between the cost of the Hawk trainer aircraft manufactured by British Aerospace and those made HAL.

After long and torturous negotiations, India bought British made Hawk jets to train pilots in 2004. Of the initial 62 Hawk jets, 24 were to be bought in a fly-away condition and the remaining were to be manufactured under licence by HAL. Each Hawk aircraft manufactured Britain in 2004 cost Rs 78 Crore. Those manufactured at HAL would have cost Rs 88 crore that year. The cost Hawk aircraft produced by HAL continued to increase. In 2010, the cost shot-up to Rs 98 crore and in 2016, Rs 153 crore.

The difference in price “is primarily due to lesser efficiency and exorbitant man hour rates,” the review has found.

The purchase of 126 Medium Multi-Role Rafale fighters being negotiated by the previous government, 108 would have been assembled in India by HAL, was scrapped because of high man hour cost at HAL, which would have needed 2.7 times more man-hours than the French company for each aircraft, said the HT report.

HAL disagreed with the interpretation of the report. Responding to queries, a spokesperson told HT, “Cost escalation from 2005 (for the Hawk jet) is normal. We also need to take into account the life-cycle cost of each product against off the shelf purchase from overseas.”

“The indigenous benefits, the ecosystem HAL creates for the larger benefit of the country should be factored in also. Importantly, staggered or small orders deny economies of scale to HAL,” said the spokesperson.

HAL also pointed to supply chain issues adding to cost. “Given that multiple agencies get involved in our manufacturing process, kit cost from OEMs and other delays like raw material and spare part supply issues, which are also endemic to the aerospace industry in India, the increase in cost must be evaluated in the right spirit,” the spokesperson added.

India News

Wrestlers left to grapple with Delhi Police might, march fails, Jantar Mantar cleared

The wrestlers had called for a mahila samman mahapanchayat with support from farmers and khap panchayats from various states

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Wrestlers left to grapple with Delhi Police might, march fails, Jantar Mantar cleared

The Delhi Police on Sunday cleared the protest area occupied by protesting wrestlers in Jantar Mantar after detaining several wrestlers, including women, on their march to the new Parliament building which was being inaugurated at that time.

The wrestlers had called for a mahila samman mahapanchayat with support from farmers and khap panchayats from various states. With Delhi Police declaring the area around Parliament a no-go zone in view of the ceremonies there today, the wrestlers were not allowed to proceed on their march from Jantar Mantar.

The wrestlers, Vinesh Phogat, Sakshi Malik and Bajrang Punia, were detained at Jantar Mantar when the protesters tried to clear the barricades and ended up breaking them.

Videos on Twitter showed a brawl between protesters and Delhi Police personnel as the latter tried to break up the altercation. A woman police officer can be seen taking a woman away from the protest scene in one of the videos.

Unfazed, Punia declared the mahapanchayat will take place today without fail. He said the wrestlers would continue their struggle for their self-respect. The Olympian bronze medallist said the Modi government was destroying democracy on the very same day it was inaugurating a new Parliament. He urged the authorities to free protesters who had been detained by police.

The borders into Delhi had been shut since the morning over the mahapanchayat timing with the Parliament inauguration. Traffic jams were legion along the peripheries of the city as farmers in tractors were refused entry into Delhi, leading to a long pile-up of traffic.

The wrestlers have been on protest since April 23 seeking action against Wrestling Federation of India chief Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh, the MP from Kaiserganj and a UP strongman, for sexually harassing women athletes.

The wrestlers have won widespread support from farmers who have now stepped in to seek justice for the exploited women.

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Caught on cam: Class 10 girl falls from school terrace in Ayodhya, family accuses school authority of rape and murder

The parents of the deceased girl said their daughter was called to school despite ongoing summer vacations.

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Caught on cam: Class 10 girl falls from school terrace in Ayodhya, family accuses school authority of rape and murder

A class 10 girl students died after falling off the terrace of her school building in Ayodhya, Uttar Pradesh. While school said the girl fell from the swing, family accuses school officials of assault on their daughter.

The incident took place at 8:45 AM in the Sunbeam School, Ayodhya, of which the girl was a student.

The parents of the deceased girl said their daughter was called to school despite ongoing summer vacations.

At around 10:00 am on Friday, the parents received a call from the school administration informing them about their to have fallen from a swing and was severely injured.

The family then immediately rushed to the hospital but were informed by the doctors that their daughter had died during treatment.

The family doubted and informed the police about the incident.

The entire incident on the floor was caught on camera, the police during the investigation retrieved a CCTV footage that showed the girl falling on the floor.

Ayodhya SP Police on the matter said as the girl’s mother was out somewhere, once she comes back and once CCTV footages and other surveillance evidences are retrieved his team will conduct the investigation.

Deceased girl’s grandfather while speaking to media said at around 8:48 am, her daughter left for the school and at around 9:50 am, they received a call from the school authority.

The victim’s grandfather further informed that first they were told by the school management that the girl had fallen from the swing but later in the evening after watching the CCTV footage they got know to that she was thrown from from the terrace.

He further alleged that Brijesh Yadav, Abhishek Kanojia and another person killed her grand daughter. He again putting stress on Abhishek Kanojia’s name said he is responsible for the death.

School principal has distanced from giving any comments on the incident.

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India News

Bihar: Snake found in mid-day meal in Araria school, 100 students hospitalised

Reports said the incident occurred on Saturday at Amouna middle school Ward No. 21, under Jogbani Nagar Parishad.

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Mid-day meal Bihar

A ruckus broke out at a government school in the Araria district of Bihar after a snake was found in the Khichdi served to students under the mid-day meal scheme.

Reports said the incident occurred on Saturday at Amouna middle school Ward No. 21, under Jogbani Nagar Parishad and landed as many as 100 students in the hospital. Officials said the affected students are undergoing treatment and are out of danger.

The pictures of the dead snake floating in the Khichdi are doing rounds on the internet.

Have a look at the pictures:

Reports further said students were served khichdi prepared by an NGO during the mid-day meal and the students who already ate the food ended up barfing following which they were rushed to the Forbesganj hospital.

Araria district education office Rajkumar said all the students who ate the food are safe and an investigation has been launched into the matter.

DEO Rajkumar also said the NGO, which was assigned for the mid-day meals in the school, will face the cancellation of their license.

The school authorities noticed the dead snake after a student pointed it out and informed everyone. However, about 100 students had eaten the meal till then.

Reports said school teachers complained several times to the NGO about the bad quality of mid-day meals they have been serving to the students, however, their complaint was neglected.

This is not the first mid-day meal mishap reported in Bihar. In November 2022, as many as 200 students were hospitalised after eating mid-day meals at a middle school in Naugachhia in Bhagalpur.

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