India on Monday notified the second defence negative import list, called the ‘Positive Indigenisation List’ of 108 items, which included light helicopters with single engines, next-generation Corvettes, Airborne Early Warning and Control (AEW&C) systems, mini-UAV for surveillance, and anti-material rifles among others.
This is the second list issued after the government’s list of 101 negative imports in August last year. A negative import list is a boost for domestic industries as it details all the military equipment that the government won’t import in the future.
Of the 108 items in the second list, the cut-off date for 49 of those in December 2021. The major ones on this list are light medium and heavy combat armoured vehicles for the infantry, helicopter launched anti-tank guided missile (ATGM) for up to 7 Km, mission systems for AEW&C, single-engine land variant helicopter weighing less than 3.5 T among others.
Jayant D Patil, President, Society of Indian Defence Manufacturers (SIDM), said, “The second Positive Indigenation List is another testament of the confidence placed by the Government and the Armed Forces on the Industry to deliver cutting-edge Defence Technology for India’s security requirements.”
The defence ministry in a statement stated that the second list lays special focus on weapons or systems that are currently under development and are likely to translate into firm orders in the future.
