The Central Public Works Department (CPWD) is considering replacing some of the imported equipment used in its construction projects, including CCTV cameras, with locally produced gadgets after Prime Minister Narendra Modi urged Indians to be “vocal for local” in his address on May 12, officials said.
The CPWD held a meeting, chaired by Director-General Puneet Kumar Vats, on May 22 to come up with a list of imported products used by the construction agency to replace them with indigenous equipment as far as possible.
“About 90% of the materials used by CPWD are made in India. We have made a list of the imported products being used due to lack of a similar quality option available. We will change to indigenous products depending on what is available in the market,” Mr. Vats told The Hindu on Sunday.
In a communication to senior officials on May 22, the CPWD said the meeting was held to draw up a list of imported products after the Prime Minister’s call for “self reliance”. It added that the list arrived at during the meeting included the chillers for central air-conditioning systems that are over 500 tonne capacity, variable refrigerant flow systems, variable frequency drives, high-end audio-video equipment, networking systems, building management system, CCTVs, access control systems, peripheral anti-intrusion systems, stage lighting, control panels of addressable fire alarm systems, bearing for base isolation, synthetic turf and tensile fabrics.
Seeking comments and additions to the list from its field units till June 5, the CPWD said, “The Department needs to explore the possibility of using indigenous brands to the extent possible in place of imported brands.”
