Nashik

India is looking at taking domestic defence production to 100 per cent as dependence on foreign military supplies creates "strategic vulnerability", Defence Minister Rajnath Singh said on Friday.

Singh said this after inaugurating a third production line of Tejas Light Combat Aircraft (LCA)-Mk1A and a second manufacturing facility of trainer jet HTT-40.

With opening of the new facility for Tejas jets, the Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd (HAL) is expected to produce at least 24 LCA aircraft.

"There was a time when the country was dependent on other countries to meet its defence needs, and almost 65-70 percent of defence equipment was imported," Singh said in his address

"But today, this situation has changed; now India is doing 65 per cent manufacturing on its own soil," he said.

"Very soon, we will take our domestic manufacturing to 100 per cent as well," he said.

Singh said India's defence export has reached a record Rs 25,000 crore which was less than Rs 1,000 crore few years ago.

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"We have now set a target to achieve Rs three lakh crore in domestic defence manufacturing and Rs 50,000 crore in defence exports by 2029," he said.