New Delhi: In a bid to boost its ‘Make in India’ initiative, the Indian Ministry of Defense on Thursday signed a contract worth Rs 2,312 crore with defense PSU Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) to produce eight Dornier 228 aircraft for Hindustan Aeronautics. indian coast guard.The contract was signed under the ‘Purchase (India) Category’ in the presence of Defense Minister Rajesh Kumar Singh.The contract reinforces the government’s commitment to Atmanibal Bharat while strengthening India’s maritime security architecture.The scheme is expected to create substantial direct and indirect employment opportunities by strengthening HAL’s production ecosystem and supporting a wide network of MSMEs and ancillary industries. This will also create ongoing opportunities in maintenance, repair and overhaul and life cycle technical support, the Ministry of Defense said.As of now, HAL is involved in a wide range of defense projects and manages a huge order book, which involves the production of more than 180 Tejas Mk-1A fighter jets and development of Tejas Mk-II; development and production of Light Combat Helicopter (LCH), Prachand (an additional 156 units ordered), Indian Multi-purpose Helicopter (IMRH), Light Utility Helicopter (LUH) and Dhruv Advanced Light Helicopter (ALH); production of 70 HTT-40 Basic training aircraft; and obtained production license for Su-30MKI engine and MiG-29 upgraded version.HAL on Thursday reported strong financial results for the 12th quarter of the current financial year, with the defense PSU reporting a 29.6 per cent year-on-year growth in its consolidated net profit. Profit after tax for the quarter was 1,866.7 billion rupees, as compared to 1,439.8 billion rupees in the same period last fiscal year (Q3FY25), according to an exchange filing.
