John,

My suggestion to anyone who wants to buy a gun from India would be to check with only those gun shops that have export licenses. There still are hundreds of gun shops but the number that have permission to expoirt guns is very small - probably less than 20 across the country. It is best to go to one of those, see for yourself, handle a gun and then buy it.

That said, these days, prices in India are much higher than outside as some of the big bore guns are now legal again thanks to the Supreme Court decision of some years ago. Those that are chambered in obsolete calibres are probably still available cheap (I have ben away for five years and am not sure what prices are like) but for the most part, that market is as good as dead.