International Trade
What India imports
Interpret the book's tables of what India imports.
In the 1950s and 1960s, India's main imports were food grains, capital goods (machines to build industries) and machinery.
After the Green Revolution, India stopped importing food grains. But the oil crisis of 1973 sharply raised the cost of petroleum imports.
Today, fuel's share of imports has risen to 31.6 per cent (2021-22), while capital goods fell to 10.1 per cent.
Why so much petroleum? It reflects India's industrialisation, better living standards (more vehicles, more power), and rising world oil prices.
Other big imports: non-ferrous metals, chemicals, precious stones, gold and silver, and edible oils. Oil tops the import bill.
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