The Rafale deal negotiated by the Modi government resulted in a substantial 350 million reduction for 36 aircraft in flyaway condition as compared with terms that were being considered by the UPA and there is a further 1,300 million saving for weapons, maintenance and training....
NEW DELHI: The Rafale deal negotiated by the Modi government resulted in a substantial 350 million reduction for 36 aircraft in flyaway condition as compared with terms that were being considered by the UPA and there is a further 1,300 million saving for weapons, maintenance and training.
Refuting the main opposition Congress's allegations that costs for acquiring the French fighter ballooned under NDA, well placed sources said a comparison of aircraft being purchased in flyaway condition shows savings adding up to a tidy Rs 12,600 crore and also pointed out that there had, in fact, been no deal under UPA.
Congress spokespersons have alleged a sharp and unexplained increase in cost of manufacturing after NDA assumed office which meant the government could only afford to buy 36 aircraft without much-needed transfer of technology. The opposition suggested that cost per aircraft rose from Rs 526 crore to Rs 1,570 crore and
said the government was uneasy over sharing data.
Sources said a comparison of aircraft to be procured in flyaway condition demonstrates NDA's success in bettering the terms. Under the 126-aircraft contract contemplated by UPA, 18 aircraft were to be delivered in flyaway condition. NDA's reworked contract is for 36 aircraft in flyaway condition. UPA was getting 18 fighters for around 100 million each and the cost now is around 90 million per fighter. The current government also procured the Meteor missile that makes the fighter much more effective.
In details revealed to TOI, sources said a major success of hard bargaining with Dassault Aviation, makers of Rafale, was favorable commercial terms for India. Payment terms for the 126 Rafales under the previous MMRCA (medium multi-role combat aircraft) project was based on a fixed escalation figure of 3.9%. The 36 Rafale fighters contracted by the Modi government are linked to a limit of 3.5%. This ensures an additional saving of around 200 million while it could add up to around 1 billion Euros.
The government has also argued that Dassault Aviation was unwilling to take responsibility of quality control of production for the 108 aircraft in India under terms negotiated by UPA. "While Dassault provisioned for 3 crore man hours for production in India, HAL's (Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd) estimate was three times higher, escalating costs manifold," said a source.
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