On the one hand, that's an former Air Chief saying that there's a Tu-160 deal of some sort in the work,
On the other hand, that's an former Indian Air Chief saying that, so who knows.
An Indian air chief have also once said that Su-30MKIs can detect J-20s beyond the radar range of the Su-30MKIs themselves. After retiring, he also once said that the Rafale outclasses everything in the PLAAF inventory.
Modi also once said that Indian fighter jets can hide from Pakistani radars by hiding above the clouds.
Whoever wrote that rag, said that Tu-160 would be '
given', not sold, but actually given to India! There should be red flag BS alarms ringing. When that writer also wrote that Tu-160 is a '
hypersonic glide weapon', I already can tell that this article is fantasy.
Why would Russia want to 'give' Tu-160s to India? This is Russia's most modern strategic nuclear-capable bomber. Russia barely has enough for its own airforce. The PAKDA program? Russia never talked about any Indian or foreign participation in their PAKDA program. Russia and India can't even finish their FGFA program, yet India wants to talk about PAKDA?
There are times to take some words coming out of India seriously. But this is not one of them.