British company sells bagpipes to India

A BRITISH firm that supplies musical instruments to military bands has won a £3.5 million contract to supply the entire Indian Army.

The British Band Instrument Company, based in Edgware, North London, will be equipping 47 regimental military bands across the subcontinent.

Alun Hughes, managing director and founder of the six-person firm, said it often deals with ‘bands that are a legacy of the Commonwealth’.

He added: ‘It was probably one of the largest contracts I have ever worked on.’

The Indian contract includes bagpipes and percussion instruments.

Baroness Fairhead, Minister of State for trade and export promotion at the Department for International Trade, said: ‘With their high-quality products reaching all corners of the world, this firm is a great example of the success that exporting can bring to UK companies.’