India Expands Indigenization Efforts With 108-Item Import Ban List
As part of wide-scale and on-going efforts to expand India’s domestic defense production capabilities, the Indian government announced a new “positive indigenization list” of 108 defense items which cannot be imported from abroad. The list will be implemented over a four-year period from December of this year through December 2025. The list is not the first of its kind, with a list containing 101 different items being announced last year and already undergoing implementation.
According to an official government release from 31 May:
“In pursuance of Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi’s endeavor of ‘Atmanirbhar Bharat’ [self reliant India] and to boost indigenisation in the Defence sector, Raksha Mantri Shri Rajnath Singh has approved a proposal of the Department of Military Affairs, Ministry of Defence (MoD) to notify the ‘Second Positive Indigenisation List’ of 108 items. This will give further boost to indigenisation with active participation of public and private sector for fulfilling the twin objectives of achieving self-reliance and promoting defence exports. All the 108 items will now be procured from indigenous sources as per provisions given in Defence Acquisition Procedure (DAP) 2020.”
The first government list contained a wide variety of items ranging from towed artillery to electronic warfare systems and the new one is no different. Some types of helicopters, video-processing cards, tank engines, next generation corvettes and mine clearance systems are just a few examples from the 2021 edition. Compared to the previous list, a large amount of equipment which is currently being developed or undergoing trials has been included.
The Indian government states that the list has been developed in close consultation with India’s private defense sector. The impact could be felt immediately with stocks for top Indian defense companies surging upwards. Within a day of the government’s announcement, Astra Microwave Products saw a 4.4 % gain in share price while Garden Reach Shipbuilders & Engineers saw a surge of 5%. Other defense companies saw a similar boost to their stock value.