A standout feature of the India-UK free trade agreement signed last month was the Narendra Modi government's decision to open India's vast government procurement market to UK suppliers.

This typically includes a range of things the government buys - from goods and services to contracts for public works such as roads.

Some 40,000 high-value tenders worth £38bn from federal ministries will now be open to bidding for UK businesses in strategic sectors like transport, green energy and infrastructure - areas which have thus far been heavily protected from foreign competition.

The access is unprecedented, trade experts say.

It is "far greater" than what India had offered in its earlier agreement with the United Arab Emirates and "sets a new benchmark", Ajay Srivastava of the Global Trade Research Initiative (GTRI), a Delhi-based think-tank, told the BBC.