BANGALORE: Indian Air Force Chief Air Marshal Arup Raha today said the situation on the Line of Control was not alarming despite the recent firing incidents and a need is not seen for the air force to intervene.
Speaking to reporters on the sidelines of 54th Indian Society of Aerospace Medicine here, he said the Indian army and the BSF were handling the situation well and the response from the Indian side against Pakistani Army’s firing on Indian posts ‘was appropriate’.
‘We are always prepared. There is no tension as such. If you ask me it is normal. The situation has not been exceptional and it (cross border firing) had been happening. The army and BSF are there and the response has been appropriate,’ he said.
On delay in Indigenous army equipment production and clearance of products Intermediary Jet Trainer, LCA Tejas and others by state-run aircraft maker HAL, the air chief said indigenous products takes time to develop and through there was ‘slight’ delay, the armed forces would push for buying indigenous products.
‘There is a lot of thrust given on indigenous production of military hardware and this Government is very serious to push it further and to a higher level.
‘We (the armed forces) do not want to buy systems and hardware from outside. We have to be self reliant. There is going to be lot of activity in this direction,’ he said.
Downplaying inordinate delay in development indigenous technology in aviation, Air Marshal Raha said LCA will be coming and the development of IJT, through delayed, also will come. ‘They are delayed slightly. It happens in any indigenous production. We are doing it for the first time. There are so many countries that attained late after many years they also had setbacks,’ he added. (AGENCIES)
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