New Delhi, May 24
The sheer amount of paper work for the India’s biggest military tender to purchase 126 medium range multi-role combat aircraft (MMRCA) has become a task in itself for the ministry of defence (MoD). So much so that it may take several months just to read the proposals submitted by global players, who are in the business of making fighter jets.

The deal to buy the 126 aircraft, worth $ 11 billion, has resulted in a huge volume of “paper work” as the six leading bidders have submitted proposals to the MoD running into thousands of pages each, said a top ranking official in the ministry of defence. The proposals of each of the manufacturers are anything between 6,000 pages and 8,000 pages each and reading them is a task in itself.

Sources in the IAF believe that it will take two years from now just to place the order to one of the manufacturers.

Each detail has to be scrutinised. It will take six months to first evaluate the fighter jets on a technical basis that is a comparison of each of the jets of what they promise.

The second part will be the financial bids, said the official while confirming that a team of 14 officials has been deputed just to read the proposals and then submit an assessment. These officials are virtually closeted inside the rooms to maintain the secrecy of the bid.

Since it is one of the biggest defence deals the officials are being very careful. The defence minister A.K. Antony has already made it clear that no middlemen will be allowed. The existing defence procurement procedure is also to be amended.

Once the MoD does its shortlisting the IAF pilots will be called in to test fly the same and give their own assessment.

Once an order is placed only a few of the jets will be available in a ready to fly condition while the others will have to be manufactured under the transfer of technology arrangement that the foreign bidders will have with their Indian counterparts. The transfer of technology is the biggest comparison being made by the MoD.

The government of India had sent out a request for proposals to American firms Lockheed Martin (F-16 Fighting Falcon), Boeing (F/A-18E/F Super Hornets), Eurofighter (Typhoon), Dassault Aviation (Rafale), Russian UAC (Mig-35) and Swedish Saab (Gripen NG).

The bids were received in the South Block in the last week of April.