Air Chief Marshal Amar Preet Singh on Thursday raised concerns over India’s inability to retain top talent in defence R&D, saying that the country is “not able to get the best people for the job” as many skilled professionals continue to migrate abroad. Addressing the CII Annual Business Summit 2025, he called for improved incentives, better pay, and a robust work environment to strengthen India’s defence innovation ecosystem.
“We need to have adequate impetus toward disrupting technology and also though it was said very clearly that ‘incentive doesn’t get you people, it is the environment that gets you people’. But I think to some extent we need to create some incentive, some good environment so that we get the best people for the job,” the air chief said.
“We are not able to get the best people for the job. People are going outward. They’re going and working from other countries. I think we need to retain them here by giving them good payment, good incentive, good work environment, maybe some recognition,” he added.
Singh’s comments come in the wake of Operation Sindoor, which he described as a “national victory” that showcased professional coordination across India’s security agencies and armed forces. He said the operation, fought with purpose and supported by domestic capabilities, highlighted the critical need to accelerate both indigenous design and rapid manufacturing.
“We were taking the path of truth, I think God was with us also in this,” he said. “Like it has been said again and again, this was an operation that was executed in a very professional manner by everybody, all the agencies, all the forces…and when the truth is with you, then everything happens on its own.”
The Air Force Chief noted that India must now act with urgency. “We have to be now ready to be future ready. So that is the concern that yes I can look at the next 10 years we will have certain more output from the Indian industry and the DRDO but what is required today is required today. We need to quickly get our act together…maybe get into some quick Make in India programs so that we can achieve that ‘now ready’ part of it.”
He also warned the industry against overpromising on delivery schedules. “Timeline is a big issue. Once a timeline is given, not a single project that I can think of has been completed on time. So this is something where we have to look at,” Singh said, indirectly referencing delays such as those in the Tejas Mk1A delivery by Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd.
“Why should we promise something which cannot be achieved? While signing the contract itself some of the time we are sure that it is not going to come up but we just sign the contract…we’ve been trying to encourage people but somewhere it’ll break down someday.”
Calling for structural change, he said: “We cannot just talk about producing in India. We need to start designing and developing in India as well. When it comes to producing in numbers, the capacity comes in. So we need to have this trust between the forces and the industry continued. We need to have the communication continued.”
Singh welcomed the opening up of the Advanced Medium Combat Aircraft (AMCA) programme to private sector participation, calling it a “very big step” that reflects the government’s growing confidence in private industry. He also pushed for higher R&D investment across sectors, invoking the Sikh tradition of Daswant: “10% of our earnings should go back to society. Something like that should go to R&D and defence of the nation.”
