Air Chief Marshal Amar Preet Singh on Wednesday highlighted India’s technological prowess in defence operations, pointing to the warfare used by the armed forces in ‘Operation Sindoor’.

The Indian Air Force chief pulled out a line from Bollywood actor Salman Khan’s library to emphasise India’s resolve to become fully self-reliant (Atmarnirbhar) and to maximise the use of defence machinery produced in the homeland. The Air Chief Marshal said, “Ek baar jo humne commit kiya hai, fir mai apne aap ki bhi nahi sunta (Once we commit to something, then I don’t even to listen to myself after that).”

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Speaking at the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) event, Singh noted that merely talking about producing defence equipment in India is not enough. Rather, “we need to start designing and developing in India also and when it comes to producing in numbers, the capacity comes in”, the Air Force chief added.

He pressed on the need to have continued “trust” between the forces and the industry, along with communication and openness. “We need to be very open and forthright with each other so that this relationship doesn’t break down in any way,” Singh said.

It’s like this, “Pran jaaye par vachan jaye” (It’s okay if we die, but it’s not okay for our commitment to die), the Air Chief Marshal quipped.

Singh backed the statement made by the Chief of Naval Staff on Operation Sindoor and said that the military strike is indeed proof that the character of war is changing.

“Operation Sindoor has given us a clear idea of where we are headed and what we need in future. So a lot of work needs to be done in realigning our own thought processes also, which is already going on,” Air Chief Marshal Amar Preet Singh added.

‘Make this nation a great nation’

Noting the clearance that the advanced medium combat aircraft (AMCA) has received for participation from the private industry, Singh said that this “is the kind of confidence that the nation has in private industry today”.

He expressed confidence that such steps are going to pave the way for “bigger things coming in the future”.

The Air Chief Marshal also took the stage to note the issue of “timeline”. He said that he couldn’t think of a single project that was completed on time and called for retrospection on the same.

Quoting Winston Churchill, Singh requested the private industry leaders to rise up to the occasion, telling them this could “be your finest hour”.

“If today somebody’s manufacturing world-class cars, electronics, equipment in the civil domain, why can’t that industry or some of the industries join hands together and say ‘We will make world-class military equipment? Even if it doesn’t give me the profit that I’m looking for.’ Let’s rise together to make this nation a great nation,” the Air Chief Marshal said while concluding his address at the CII event.