This is according to Alexander Derricott, analyst at IHS Technology, for the access control and fire division.  Although the Indian market for electronic access control failed to meet prior growth expectations for 2015, the country still outperformed Malaysia, Australia and other countries in the region. He believes that the underperformance in India can be attributed to legislation and other internal factors, while the effects of the downturn in the Chinese economy, and declining commodity prices. has had a limited influence on growth.

One of the core challenges for suppliers working in India is that taxes within India can vary significantly from state to state. The lack of centralised tax structure has made the Indian market a difficult one to enter or operate in, because it is more like a collection of 29 countries rather a single country.

According to IHS Economic Country Risk, the Indian economy is gaining momentum; however it has not been operating at full capacity, due to various structural issues, including those listed above. The current government under Prime Minister Modi has aimed to alleviate some of the issues surrounding tax and land acquisition, while also promoting India as a manufacturing hub and expects the following two key pieces of legislation expected will be passed this year.

The first is a goods and services tax (GST), a flagship proposal by the Indian government that aims to introduce a nationwide value-added tax (VAT) that will have few exemptions. The introduction of this tax will remove the difficulties and risk associated with operating across various Indian states, which will dramatically simplify the country’s tax system. Professional taxes, state sales taxes, and local taxes (such as octroi, the tax levied when goods enter a state), will all be bundled into the GST. If the GST becomes law, companies will be able to see their tax liability on a country-wide level, rather than a mix of taxes from individual states.

According to IHS direct impact of the GST on the access control market will be twofold: first, companies will find it simpler to enter the market and manage their tax exposure; and second, by standardising taxes, both local and foreign investment should become more readily available, as investors gain confidence in the Indian economy. The boost in investment is aimed at helping translate the growing momentum in the Indian economy into an increase in gross domestic product (GDP) growth.

The second major bit of legislation, introduced by the previous government, is the reform of the Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act of 2013. Under this act, the government or investors are required to obtain the consent of 80 percent of farmers for land being acquired for private projects and 70 percent for public-private partnerships. The government's bill proposed to remove this consent provision, along with the requirement for social impact assessments for infrastructure, defence, national security, industrial corridor, and affordable housing projects. The relaxation of these laws should spur future construction projects -- especially small and medium-sized enterprises.

"The Indian access control market is bright", says Derricott,  "as India is less exposed to the Chinese downturn and has actually benefited from the decline in commodity prices. Raw materials and energy costs have decreased, leading to lower cost of inputs and industry expansion. The buoyant industrial sector will spur the development of new sites, leading to additional demand for access-control products."

If the GST and “Land Bill” remain unchallenged in parliament then the access control market is set to benefit from the boost in the business environment in India.