Achievements and Limitations of India’s Technological Capability

As with all policy-oriented concepts, there is a risk of tailoring the definition of indigenous capability (ITC) to a conclusion: since ITC is obviously desirable, one is inclined to find in it an omnibus quality which brings all the luck in acquiring and using technology. Whether such a talisman exists or not, it is necessary to specify what precisely is required; and a closer familiarity with how technology actually changes in less-developed countries is necessary to understand how far the acquisition of ITC is feasible. In this paper we seek to set out what we understand by ITC, and to place it in the context of technological changes in Indian industry to get some idea of its feasibility and phasing.