Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday inaugurated the new 43-acre state-of-the-art Boeing India Engineering & Technology Center (BIETC) campus in Bengaluru, built at a cost of Rs 1,600 crore, the largest investment made by Boeing outside the USA.

The prime minister also launched the Boeing Sukanya Programme that aims to support the entry of more girl children from across India into the country’s growing aviation sector.

He took a walk-through of the Experience Center and interacted with the Sukanya beneficiaries.

COO of Boeing Company Ms Stephanie Pope lauded the prime minister’s focus on the growth of the aviation sector in India and his instrumental role in making the Boeing Sukanya Program a reality today.

She expressed gratitude for the continued support and looked forward to working together to shape the future of aerospace. Ms Stephanie said this new campus is a testament to Boeing’s engineering legacy and it underlines the belief in the availability, depth of talent and capability that exists in India.

She elaborated on the scope of the new campus and Boeing’s plan to create an ecosystem that propels India to the forefront of the aerospace industry. Ultimately, Ms Stephanie said the new Boeing campus would become one of the most cutting-edge examples of the Prime Minister’s self-reliant India initiative or ‘Atmanirbharta’.

Ms Stephanie praised PM Modi for his idea of the Sukanya programme and lauded Boeing’s efforts to create and accelerate opportunities in aviation for Indian women. “This programme will break barriers and inspire more women to pursue careers in aerospace,” she remarked.

She explained about the plans to provide STEM labs in middle schools and expressed confidence that Boeing and India’s partnership would shape the future of aviation and make a positive difference for the people of India and around the world.

Addressing the gathering, the prime minister said Bengaluru is a city which 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 added.

He said the scale and magnitude of the investment will not only strengthen India but also the aviation market of the world.

Modi said that this facility demonstrates India’s commitment to driving 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 would design aircraft of the future in this facility.

Recalling the inauguration of Asia’s largest helicopter manufacturing factory in Karnataka last year, the prime minister 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.

He emphasised 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.

The government is committed to creating new opportunities for women in the aerospace sector, he said. “Be it fighter pilots or civil aviation, India is leading the world in the number of women pilots,” a proud Prime Minister said informing that 15 per cent of India’s pilots are women which is three times more than the global average.