India to ask foreign firms to source more local materials for government projects

NEW DELHI (Reuters) - India will demand foreign firms use more locally produced materials when working on government-run projects, a government order said late on Friday.

Indian authorities have been aggressively promoting Prime Minister Narendra Modi's flagship campaign of a self-reliant economy by urging domestic manufacturers to cut down on imports.

The Indian trade ministry's Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT), ordered all government administrative divisions to notify it of projects valued above 10 billion rupees ($135.96 million) that are planned for the next five years.

DPIIT has still to announce the new local content requirement threshold for foreign firms entering into partnerships for state-run infrastructure projects. The threshold is currently 20-50%.

Firms in countries which do not allow Indian companies to participate in their government projects will not be allowed to tender bids for Indian government projects, the order said.

(Reporting by Neha Arora and Aftab Ahmed; Editing by Kirsten Donovan)