Government asks its wings to procure 'Made in India' goods

The Cabinet Secretariat has asked all government agencies to give preference to domestically produced goods in its procurement programme in a bid to push Prime Minister Narendra Modi's "Make in India" campaign.

"A committee of secretaries has decided that all ministries and departments should identify department-specific domestically manufactured electronic products for procurement, and notify them within a fortnight," an official communique said Saturday.

"All government departments have been asked to adhere to a tender template already issued by the Department of Electronics and Information Technology, for procurement of electronic items," said the communique from the Prime Minister's Office.

"The Department of Electronics and Information Technology has also been asked to put in place an online monitoring system for reporting by Ministries/Departments and State Governments, on procurement of electronic products."

The official note said this system, to be operationalised within a fortnight, will capture the break-up of domestically manufactured electronic equipment by value.

The "Make in India" campaign was launched by Modi Sep 25, promising the investors, domestic and overseas, an environment conducive to turn the country into a manufacturing hub and, in turn, create job opportunities for at least 100 million youth.

The vision statement outlined in www.makeinindia.gov.in commits to increasing the manufacturing growth to 12-14 percent per annum over the medium term and increase the share of manufacturing in the country's gross domestic product from 16 percent to 25 percent by 2022.