HAL was used to target govt: PM Modi
- Tuma kuru: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday attacked the Congress for "using" the Hindustan Aeronautics Limited as a pretext to level allegations against his government and instigate people.
- "Today, HAL's helicopter factory stands as a testimony that has exposed the lies and misinformation spread about HAL", Modi said, without naming the Congress, after inaugurating the Bengaluru-headquartered company's helicopter factory the country's largest chopper manufacturing facility at Bidar Halla kaval said. in Gubbi taluk of this district.
- "The Hindustan Aeronautics Limited was used as a pretext to level allegations against our government. Conspiracies were hatched to instigate people. Today the HAL is advancing our motto of Atmanirbhar Bharat'," he said.
- The then Congressperson dent Rahul Gandhi had during 2017-18 said there was a need to "defend the dignity of India's defenders" as he accused the Narendra Modi government of "snatching" the Rafale offset contract from HAL and "gifting" it to Anil Ambani's company.
- "HAL is India's strategic asset. The future of India's aerospace industry has been destroyed by snatching #Rafale from HAL & gifting it to Anil Ambani," the Congress leader had said.
- Rahul and his Congress party at the time were at tacking the Modi government over the Rs 58,000 crore Rafale fighter jet deal allege. Ing corruption and favoritism.
- Modi recalled that he had in 2016 laid the foundation stone of the factory, which was inaugurated today, with a resolve that India has to minimize its defense imports and become self-reliant.
- "Now, hundreds of defiance equipment are manufactured in India," he pointed out.
- Hailing the contribution of HAL, he said the investment in the aerospace sector in the last eight to nine years is five times more than the figure witnessed in the 15-year period before 2014.
- HAL plans to produce more than 1,000 helicopters in the range of 3-15 tones, with a total business of over Rs 4 lakh crore over a period of 201 years, at this facility in Gubbi taluk, officials said.
- Spread across 615 acres of land, the factory, for which the PM laid the foundation stone in 2016, would initially manufacture Light Utility Helicopters (LUH)).