India has laid the foundation stone for a Core Integration and Flight Testing Centre at Puttaparthi in Andhra Pradesh to fast-track the development of the fifth-generation Advanced Medium Combat Aircraft and other future indigenous platforms.
The facility, being set up by the Aeronautical Development Agency, an affiliate organisation of DRDO, will be established at an approximate cost of ₹2,000 crore.
It is a key part of the AMCA programme, which has a total outlay of around ₹15,000 crore.
Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu laid the foundation stone for the facility at Puttaparthi in Sri Sathya Sai district on Friday, 15 May 2026.
In a statement, the Ministry of Defence said the centre will support aircraft integration and flight testing for AMCA and future indigenous platforms.
Speaking at the ceremony, Rajnath Singh said Puttaparthi is set to join the exclusive league of global destinations from where a fifth-generation aircraft will take to the skies.
The event also included the foundation stone for a Naval Systems Manufacturing Facility at T Sirasapalli village in Anakapalli district.
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The ₹480 crore facility of Bharat Dynamics Limited will focus on autonomous underwater vehicles, underwater counter-measure systems and next-generation torpedoes.
Grounding ceremonies were also held for a Defence Energetics Facility and an Ammunition and Electric Fuses Plant at Madakasira in Sri Sathya Sai district.
The Defence Energetics Facility of Agneyastra Energetics Limited, a subsidiary of Bharat Forge Limited, is being set up with an investment of ₹1,500 crore.
The Ammunition and Electric Fuses Plant of HFCL Limited is being established with an investment of around ₹1,200 crore.
A consortium of 8 drone companies has also joined hands to establish a Drone City in Kurnool.
Rajnath Singh said these projects would create employment opportunities, strengthen local supply chains, support small-scale industries and give local youth a platform to work in high-end technology sectors.
He said India’s defence production has risen from ₹46,000 crore in 2014 to nearly ₹1.54 lakh crore and is expected to reach ₹1.75 lakh crore within 1 to 2 months.
Defence exports, he added, have increased from around ₹600 crore a decade ago to approximately ₹40,000 crore.
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