Govt clears plans to ramp up production of indigenous fighter jets Tejas

Parrikar said the government had just approved an investment of Rs 136 cror

India will open a second production line for its light combat aircraft, Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar said on Tuesday, pressing ahead with a home-grown plane the military has had doubts over for years.

The Tejas fighter entered service last year, 33 years after it was approved as the country sought to build a modern fighter from scratch for an air force that was entirely dependent on foreign - mostly Soviet-origin - aircraft.

But the single-engine plane remains dogged by production delays at state-run Hindustan Aeronautics and only three have so far entered the air force.

Parrikar said the government had