The Rafale deal signed by the Modi government to procure 36 fighter jets from France’s Dassault was 2.86 per cent cheaper than what was negotiated during the UPA regime in 2007, the much-awaited CAG report on the controversy-hit transaction showed on Wednesday.
Without disclosing pricing details in absolute terms, the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) also said the deal was 6.54 per cent expensive in terms of engineering support package and performance-based logistics for the Indian Air Force, while the training cost has got 2.68 per cent expensive than the 2007 offer.
The CAG also flagged the drawbacks of settling for a “Letter of Comfort” rather than a sovereign guarantee by the French government and said Dassault benefited due to absence of such guarantees.
