India bans drone parts from China amid security concerns – Reuters
India has barred local manufacturers of military drones from using Chinese components, Reuters has reported, citing defense and industry officials. Concerns in New Delhi about sensitive data potentially being compromised may be behind the move, the report claimed.
Indian military officials told potential bidders for drone tenders at two meetings earlier this year that parts procured from countries sharing land borders with India will not be acceptable for security reasons, Reuters said, citing the meeting minutes.
The report suggested that this was an indirect reference to China, with which India is locked in a longstanding border dispute. Reuters also cited industry representatives who said the ban on Chinese parts has raised the cost of Indian-made drones as manufacturers have to source the parts elsewhere. Up to 70% of goods in the drone supply chain were made in China, Sameer Joshi of Bengaluru-based startup NewSpace Research and Technologies told the agency.
India’s Ministry of Defense said it could not confirm the report when contacted by RT.
The development, however, comes amid other restrictions on Chinese products officially imposed by the Indian government. On August 3, the Ministry of Commerce and Industry restricted imports of laptops, servers, and numerous other consumer-electronic devices with immediate effect, and imposed a licensing process for these goods in a move apparently aimed at boosting local manufacturing. A day later, however, the ministry said the new rule would be only implemented from November 1.
The drone manufacturing measures come as New Delhi pushes to establish a domestic manufacturing base for various defense platforms. India has stepped up efforts to facilitate UAV production since August 2021, aiming to become a global drone hub by 2030. Over the past two years, the government has introduced a set of regulations, including the Drone (Amendment) Rules announced in February 2022, banning the import of foreign drones while freeing up the import of components.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s drive for military modernization under the ‘Make in India’ program, which encourages the development of local defense manufacturing capabilities, has seen the government allocate 1.6 trillion rupees ($19.77 billion) for 2023-24, of which 75% is reserved for domestic industry. Indian Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman also announced in February that 25% of this year’s 232.6 billion-rupee ($2.83 billion) budget for defense research and development has been earmarked for the private sector.
Currently, however, private Indian industry lacks the capacity to manufacture military drones from scratch, with key components largely being imported. In an attempt to bridge the gap in military capabilities, New Delhi announced during Modi’s first state visit to the US in June that it would buy 31 MQ-9 drones from Washington for over $3 billion. The US Congress introduced legislation back in 2019 banning federal departments and agencies from purchasing or using drones and components manufactured in China, citing cybersecurity risks.
