From April 1, the Government of India is reportedly planning to ban Chinese video surveillance or CCTV companies from selling their internet-connected CCTV cameras. This ban is mainly set to include brands such as Hikvision and Dahua all of which sell CCTV cameras and related hardware in the Indian market.
What are the new quality control rules being enforced?
According to a report from Economic Times, this ban is being enforced as new certification rules under the Standardization Testing and Quality Certification (STQC) rule will take effect from April 1, 2026.
The changes in rules for CCTV cameras stem from the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology’s (MeitY) Essential Requirements (ER) norms introduced in April 2024.
The rules require manufacturers to disclose the country of origin of key components, such as the System-on-Chip (SoC), and ensure devices are tested for vulnerabilities that could allow unauthorized remote access.
Companies were given a two-year transition window to comply. So far, more than 500 CCTV models have been certified under the new regime.
Under this new certification rule it will be mandatory for all CCTV manufacturers to register their products with the government, making approval mandatory before these products are sold in India.
Moreover, in the report it is mentioned that several industry executives have termed this a government push to tighten security standards for connected devices. As all of these companies used Chinese-origin chipsets in their devices, which is a major concern for the government of India. Since it is already putting in efforts to decrease dependency on Chinese chipsets.
The ban will bring in a significant blow to Chinese brands, as without the STQC clearances, these brands, which once dominated the sector in the country, will not be able to sell their devices.
Will this ban hurt Chinese CCTV manufacturers?
As recently as last year, the Chinese brands accounted for roughly a third of all CCTV sales in the country. However, the landscape has shifted rapidly as domestic manufacturers have stepped in to fill the void.
Indian brands are taking up the majority of the market.
Presently, however, Indian brands like CP Plus, Qubo, Prama, Matrix, and Sparsh have expanded aggressively. These brands have reworked their supply chains to rely on non-Chinese components, favoring Taiwanese chipsets, and have localised their firmware.
According to Counterpoint Research, Indian players now control over 80 percent of the market as of February, while the premium segment remains the stronghold of multinationals like Bosch and Honeywell.