Bengaluru/New Delhi: India will not have to wait too long for a Boeing aircraft that is designed and manufactured in the subcontinent, Prime Minister Narendra Modi Friday said at the inauguration of the plane maker's engineering centre in Bengaluru.

“I am confident that India's aspirations and Boeing’s expansion will emerge as a strong partnership," he said.

The centre has been built for Rs 1,600 crore on a 43-acre state-of-the-art Boeing India Engineering and Technology Centre (BIETC) campus.

This is the US aviation giant's largest investment outside the country.

The campus will become a platform for partnerships with startups, and private and government ecosystems in India.

It will also help develop next-generation products and services for the global aerospace and defence industry.

At the event, which was also attended by senior Boeing executives including Chief Operating Officer Stephanie Pope, PM Modi stressed the need to build an aircraft manufacturing ecosystem in India.

As many as 15 percent of India’s pilots are women which is three times more than the global average, PM Modi said, emphasising the central government's commitment to create new opportunities for women in the aerospace sector.

"Be it fighter pilots or civil aviation, India is leading the world in the number of women pilots ... 15 percent of India's pilots are women which is three times more than the global average," he said.

The Prime Minister also launched the Boeing Sukanya Program which aims to support the entry of more girl children from across India into the country’s growing aviation sector.

Speaking about the Boeing Sukanya program, the Prime Minister said that it will give a boost to women’s participation in the aviation sector while helping the poor living in far-flung areas to realize their dreams of becoming a pilot.

Under the program, he said that career coaching and development facilities will be provided in government schools to pursue a career as a pilot.

Modi said that the historic success of Chandrayaan has infused scientific temper among the youth of India.

Underling India’s status as a hub of STEM education, the Prime Minister noted that girls have taken up STEM subjects in a big way.

He said that India has become the world’s third-largest aviation domestic market. In a decade, the number of domestic passengers has doubled.

The PM said schemes like UDAN have played a big role in this. This number is going to increase further leading to increased demand.

This has resulted in new orders of fleets by India’s airlines giving new impetus to the global aviation sector.

“This has happened because India is working while keeping the aspiration and needs of its citizens paramount”, he said.

PM Modi talked about the government’s focus on investment in connectivity infrastructure to overcome the previous handicap of poor connectivity that was preventing India's potential in performance.

He said that India is becoming one of the most well-connected markets and added today India has about 150 operational airports, up from about 70 in 2014.

The PM also said that the efficiency of the airports has been enhanced significantly and also touched upon the increased air cargo capacity leading to the overall growth of the economy and employment generation.

PM Modi highlighted the rapid growth of the air cargo sector due to India’s increased airport capacity. He said that it has made transportation of products from remote areas of India to international markets easier. “The rapidly growing aviation sector is also giving impetus to India's overall growth and employment generation,” the PM said.

He underlined that the government is continuously taking steps at the policy level to ensure that the growth of its aviation sector continues and accelerates.

PM Modi said that the center is encouraging state governments to reduce taxes related to aviation fuel and also working to make Aircraft Leasing easier.

He also mentioned the International Financial Services Centers Authority established in Gift City to reduce India's offshore dependence on aircraft leasing and financing. “The aviation sector of the entire country will also benefit from this."

Recalling his declaration from the Red Fort, ‘Yahi Samay hai, Sahi Samay Hai’, Modi said that this is also the right time for Boeing and other international companies to link their growth with India's rapid rise.

"Building a developed India in the next 25 years has now become the resolve of 140 crore Indians,” he said. In the last 9 years, the Prime Minister said: "We have lifted approximately 25 crore Indians out of poverty and these crores of Indians are now creating a neo-middle class.

He mentioned upward mobility being seen as a trend in every income group in India. Speaking about the expansion of India's tourism sector, the Prime Minister urged the stakeholders to take maximum advantage of all the new possibilities being created.

The PM said that Bengaluru is a city that links aspirations to innovations and achievements, and India’s tech potential to global demands. "Boeing’s new technology campus is going to strengthen this belief."

He underlined that its scale and magnitude will not only strengthen India but also the aviation market of the world.

The Prime Minister said that this facility demonstrates India’s commitment to drive global tech, research & innovation, design and demand. "This strengthens the ‘Make in India-Make for the World’ resolution," he said.

"This campus reinforces the world's trust in India’s talent”, he added. He expressed the faith that one day, India will design aircraft of the future in this facility.

Recalling the inauguration of Asia’s largest helicopter manufacturing factory in Karnataka last year, PM Modi said that Boeing’s new facility is a clear indication of Karnataka’s rise as a new aviation hub. He especially congratulated the youth of India who would now have multiple opportunities to acquire new skills in the aviation industry.

The Prime Minister emphasized the government’s efforts to increase women’s participation in every sector and also reiterated India’s push towards women-led development during its G20 Presidency.

Boeing’s new campus in India will become a cornerstone for partnership with the vibrant startup, private and government ecosystem in India, and will help develop next-generation products and services for the global aerospace and defence industry.