New Delhi, Aug. 12 -- Looking to replace its ageing fleet of cargo planes, the Defence Ministry today issued a tender worth around Rs one lakh crore for buying 60 multirole transport aircraft for the Indian Air Force.

The tender has been issued to multiple Indian companies, including Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL), Tata, and Mahindra, Defence Officials told ANI, adding that "In the programme, Indian companies would be in the lead role."

Mahindra Defence has tied up with Embraer of Brazil to offer its C-390 transport plane, while Tata is going with Lockheed Martin to offer their C-130 plane, which is already in the Indian Air Force for special operations roles.

The programme would see around 20 per cent of the planes joining the In...