Can ‘Boycott China' Work?

Chinese companies have made deep inroads as investors, employers and suppliers; rolling that back in quick time is neither pragmatic nor feasible

- Pranit Sarda

On June 16, hours before the world would get to know that 20 Indian soldiers—including a commanding officer— had been killed in clashes with Chinese troops in Ladakh’s Galwan Valley, Indian news outlets reported that Chinese firm Shanghai Tunnel Engineering (STEC) had won the lowest bid to construct a stretch of the Delhi-Meerut Regional Rapid Transit System project, estimated to be worth over ₹1,000 crore.

On the same day, MG Motor India, owned by China’s SAIC Motor Corp, announced that it was starting production of the Hector Plus, a seven-seater version of its mid-size sports utility vehicle. It would be made at the factory in Gujarat that MG had acquired from General Motors in 2017.

The situation on the border with China has been tense since the first week of May when soldiers clashed at Pangong Tso, a lake through which the Line of Actual Control passes. In midMay Prime Minister Narendra Modi impressed the need to be ‘Vocal for Local’ as one way to battle the Covid19 crisis, suggesting the importance of buying and consuming locally produced goods. In mid-June, as tensions ran high between China and India, being local got a new focus— showing Chinese businesses the door.

According to media reports, Indian Railways decided to terminate a contract awarded to Beijing National Railway Research & Design Institute of Signal & Communication Group citing poor progress, while the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh and Swadeshi Jagran Manch urged the government to cancel STEC’s bid and award it to Indian companies. The Department of Telecommunication reportedly told Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd and Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Limited to not use Chinese equipment.