India and France have sorted out most of the “hitches” in the multi-billion Euro 36 Rafale fighter aircraft deal and the remaining issues will be cleared in the next Defence Acquisition Council(DAC) meet to be held on Thursday, Minister of State for Defence Rao Inderjit Singh said here on Tuesday.
He also defended the cost of the aircraft when a reporter questioned the estimated
Rs60,000 crore deal at a time when some people in the country were eating “rotis made of grass,” and said without the nation being secure, even that would not be possible.
The meeting of the Defence Acquisition Council (DAC), the apex body of the Defence Ministry for procurement, is likely to take place on April 21, a day after Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar returns to New Delhi from his visit to China.
Hoping that the Rafale deal would be inked soon, IAF Chief Arup Raha said,it is at a very advanced stage.
When asked about the timeline for inking the deal, Raha said on the sidelines of a seminar “We have seen so many years go past. How can I give an assuranceIJ But it is in a very advanced stage.”
When asked about the justification for going in for an expensive fighter jet when people in some parts of the country were “eating rotis made of grass” due to poverty, Inderjit Singh said development can happen only when the borders and the sky over the country is safe.
“Development can happen in a country only when the borders are safe and when the sky over the country is safe. And if that security is not there, rotis made of grass also cannot be eaten.
Hence, Rafale is needed, this is a different kind of aircraft.”
The two countries have nearly arrived a mutually agreed price tag of Rs60,000 crore(7.8 billion Euros) for 36 Rafales manufactured by French aviation giant Dassault. France has also agreed to the 50 per cent off set clause entailing that it will plough back half of the contracted amount into the Indian defence industry. The deal is likely to signed by May end, sources said.