New Delhi, 27 May

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh has approved the "execution model" to implement a mega project to indigenously develop a fifth generation deep penetration advanced medium combat aircraft for the Indian Air force

India has been working on the ambitious AMCA project to develop the medium weight deep penetration fighter jet with advanced stealth features to bolster its air power capability.

The defence ministry said on Tuesday that Singh has approved the "Advanced Medium Combat Aircraft (AMCA) Programme Execution Model."

"In a significant push towards enhancing India's indigenous defence capabilities and fostering a robust domestic aerospace industrial ecosystem, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh has approved the Advanced Medium Combat Aircraft (AMCA) Programme Execution Model," it said.

The Aeronautical Development Agency (ADA) is set to execute the programme through Industry partnership.

The defence ministry said the "Execution Model" approach provides equal opportunities to both private and public sectors on competitive basis.

"They can bid either independently or as joint venture or as consortia. The entity/bidder should be an Indian company compliant with the laws and regulations of the country," it said in a statement.

"This is an important step towards harnessing the indigenous expertise, capability and capacity to develop the AMCA prototype, which will be a major milestone towards Aatmanirbharta (self-reliance) in the aerospace sector," it said.

The cabinet committee on security led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi had given in-principle approval to the fighter jet programme last year.

The initial development cost of the project has been estimated at around Rs 15,000 crore.

The IAF has been pushing for the AMCA project in view of its long-term requirement.

India's confidence in the development of the AMCA saw a significant jump after the development of the Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) Tejas.