foreign consultancy…Shattering the Monopoly – Modi Government’s Attempt at Indigenous Consulting Dominance

Poonam Sharma 

Under the larger narrative of Atmanirbhar Bharat (Self-Reliant India), unprecedented importance has been given to areas such as defence manufacturing, chip technology, e-mobility, and clean energy. But one often-neglected ground where India continues to be disproportionately reliant on foreign players is the high-stakes field of consultancy and feasibility studies—especially those that form the basis of large-scale public sector investments, infrastructure undertakings, and government restructuring. Here, foreign companies like McKinsey, BCG, KPMG, PwC, and Deloitte have had a de facto monopoly.

But this is being undramatically dismantled.

The Modi government, with its belligerent attitude on national sovereignty and strategic autonomy, has now set its sight on the intellectual infrastructure of India—consulting, auditing, and feasibility analysis—and is laying the ground for long-pending structural reforms.

The Scale of Foreign Dominance

As per industry estimates, the “Big Four” audit and consultancy firms Deloitte, EY, PwC, and KPMG, and Grant Thornton collectively oversee feasibility studies, policy advice, and corporate audits worth over ₹45,000 crore a year in India. Actually, over 65 percent of Nifty 500 firms are advised or audited by these companies. Government departments, PSUs, and even the Indian judiciary have hitherto depended on such foreign-origin firms for important consulting work.

This all-pervasive reliance is not just economic—it has strategic consequences. The institutional knowledge, access to data, and project experience that these foreign companies gain over the years confer huge power over national decision-making. The worst it does is create windows for soft intervention or ideological slant in policy-making.

The New Shift: Indianizing the Consulting Ecosystem

In recent policy circles at the highest levels, such as think tanks and government advisory forums, a strong message has started emerging: India needs to develop its own institutions that can provide world-class consulting services in project viability, public finance, urban planning, and infrastructure advisory.

This is no cry for protectionism. It’s a cry for balance, for intellectual sovereignty. While foreign companies are neither being banned nor blacklisted, the government is actively urging Indian banks, PSUs, and elite institutes like IITs and IIMs to establish consulting units and special-purpose vehicles (SPVs) of their own.

The thought is straightforward—why must a foreign company be the go-to option for a mega project feasibility report in India, when we possess equally skilled, if not superior, resources within our own organizations?

Banking on Institutional Strength

Public banks such as SBI, PNB, and Bank of Baroda already possess strong internal divisions to address project finance, risk assessment, and sectoral analysis. The institutions are now being pushed to develop independent consulting verticals that can compete with international companies on the feasibility reports and implementation plans. The notion is to move from being financiers alone to becoming strategic knowledge providers.

Private sector industry majors such as HDFC and ICICI Bank are also able to venture into consulting services at low levels of investment, drawing on their extensive sectoral knowledge and data analytics.

Academic Capital: The Untapped Goldmine

India’s best institutions—IITs, IIMs, NITs—are hotbeds of intellectual capital. These institutions regularly undertake research and advisory services for international bodies. The government now plans for a framework wherein these academic institutions institutionalize consulting wings capable of accepting public and private projects within the country.

This has the potential to revolutionize India’s knowledge ecosystem so that young researchers and scholars get to contribute directly to nation-building through applied consulting.

From Passive Clients to Strategic Players

The broader objective is to transform from being passive customers of overseas companies into active contributors and knowledge exporters. The Modi government’s plan involves empowering Indian companies to establish global-sized consulting brands that are not only domestic substitutes but globally valued organizations.

In the coming times, just as India evolved from an IT offshoring platform to a SaaS giant, it can become a consulting creator from consulting consumer.

A Strategic Necessity, Not Merely an Economic One

At a time when geopolitical alignments are rapidly shifting, the question is not merely who offers the best consultancy service, but whose interests they serve. Foreign firms—however professional—may still carry implicit loyalties or strategic alignments with their home countries. It is prudent, therefore, for a rising power like India to ensure that sensitive public sector and national infrastructure decisions are guided by truly independent and nationally committed institutions.

This editorial time is not about demonizing foreign companies; it’s about claiming intellectual sovereignty. It’s about making space for Indian talent to drive Indian reforms, Indian analysis, and Indian transformation.

The Modi government appears determined to let that happen. The seeds of a new consulting revolution have been planted. It’s now up to India’s institutions to step up to the challenge.