| Date: |
12-12-2015 |
| Subject: |
Defence exports by private sector increase six-fold after policy changes |
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NEW DELHI: Key policy changes by the Modi government have resulted in a surge of defence exports by private sector companies, with numbers indicating a six-fold increase in shipments and a further rise expected by the end of the financial year.
A new liberalised set of laws, which includes an online procedure as well as exemptions from an earlier draconian 'end-user certificate' requirement have spurred the private industry to export much more than before.
Statistics shared by Minister of State for Defence, Rao Inderjit Singh, show that private companies exported military stores worth Rs 441 crore in the first six months of the financial year, based on permissions sought from the ministry of defence. Private companies had exported goods worth Rs 132 crore in all of 2014-15 and Rs 286 crore in 2013-14. While half-yearly figures for 2014-15 were not available, on a pro-rated basis, exports in the six months ended September were more than six times higher.
The share of the private sector in defence exports also shot up. Over 63 per cent of the total Rs 695 crore worth of defence exports until September was from the private sector compared with a share of 13 per cent in the previous year. Experts and industry leaders said that the numbers will rise further by the end of this financial year as several projects are under way, spurred by the policy changes that make it easier to export military stores and equipment. As first reported by ET, a new set of rules was put in place in July, easing bureaucratic hurdles in export regulations and doing away with a provision that demanded multiple assurances by foreign governments even for the sale of components and parts by Indian entities.
The changes included easing of a requirement of getting certification for components and parts only from the immediate buyer and not the ultimate end user and opening sectors such as armoured equipment, weapon control systems, countermeasure equipment, engines, underwater detection devices and military software for easy exports. A formal list of exportable defence items was also endorsed by the ministry of defence this year, bringing India at par with international laws governing arms trade.
This identifies 16 broad categories of products that can be exported after clearance, bringing clarity to private companies pursuing overseas sales.
Source : economictimes.indiatimes.com
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