Prior to 1991, India was one of the most closed economies in the world, and controls on foreign exchange transactions were near total. Today the situation is completely different. Now there are virtually no restrictions on current account transactions. Foreign exchange can easily be obtained for business expenses, travel, tourism, studies abroad, medical treatment, etc.
In the pre-reform era, a licence had to be obtained for almost  6  BIS central bankers’ speeches  every type of import, and the import duties were prohibitive. Today, there are no quantitative restrictions and duties have been substantially slashed. Our liberalization has extended to the capital sector too. India’s policy on foreign direct investment (FDI) is quite liberal and transparent.