The Department of Defence Production (DDP), under the Ministry of Defence (MoD), on Wednesday issued and notified another list of 351 defence weaponry platforms and systems which have been banned for imports. This ban will be applicable to the Defence Public Sector Undertakings (DPSUs) and the Ordnance Factories in a phased manner.
The move comes as another major impetus to the country's defence manufacturing infrastructure and indigenisation ecosystem by the govt. The government aims to allocate as well as augment investments in local defence research and development programs while promoting participation from the private sector.
The latest move is likely to save India’s foreign exchange roughly equivalent to ₹ 3000 crore per year, according to media reports. As per the official timelines made public, import ban on 172 out of the 351 defence components and systems will come into force by December 2022. The second batch includes imports of 89 systems which will be banned by 2023. The third batch includes imports of the remaining 90 systems which will be banned by December 2024.
The systems and components on the list include high pressure check valves, beacon receivers, laser warning systems, sockets, cables, antennas and voltage-control oscillators.
This list, termed as negative import list or progressive indigenization list, is third in a series of notifications issued by the DDP. The first negative import list was notified in August 2020 and is said to be fully implemented in phases by 2024. The second such list was issued in June 2021 and is said to be fully implemented by December 2025.
The first two lists incorporate weaponry systems such as artillery guns, assault rifles, sonar systems, ammunition, radars, communication satellites and shipborne cruise missile, airborne early warning and control systems, medium-power radars for mountainous terrain, fixed-wing mini-UAVs, helicopter-launched, anti-tank guided missiles.
