There was period when India was wholly dependent on other countries for all kinds of refined goods. Then the country started manufacturing articles in its own land. Even for this India had to import the total machinery from overseas. But now, the situation has altered extensively. The country now manufactures the entire machinery for textile, sugar, paper, tea, cement, mining and petrochemical plants. She has wrapped up numerous "turnkey" projects in many other countries of the world. The heavy engineering plant at Ranchi has been designing and manufacturing enormous machines required for iron and steel industry. Reasonably vast ranges of engineering goods are produced not only for domestic but for international market also. The industry earns the hard-needed foreign exchange.

Hindustan Machine Tools (HMT) produces an extensive variety of machines and precision tools, preserving extremely lofty international standards. It has umpteen production centres in the country.

In light engineering, the country tops the developing world. It has set up "Industrial Estates" in several Afro-Asian countries too.