Chineseware eating into Indian market

 By Avishek Ganguly


As the tension mounts over Chinese military activities and its affect on India, there is perhaps one aspect which is not being given so much of importance that it ought to be. We may be worried about Chinese encroachment in Arunachal Pradesh, the deployment of troops in POK or the growing Chinese infantry, but one fact that most of us do not really realize is how slowly and steadily China is occupying a major share of the Indian market, which may put an adverse affect on the Indian economy.



I guess everyone will agree that today wars are fought more on money rather than weapons. Just like its military force, a country’s economic power too is a major factor which determines its strength in the global scenario. According to India’s first Chief of Staff of the military, Field Marshal Madappa Cariappa, "in modern warfare, a large army is not sufficient, it needs industrial potential behind it. If the army is the first line of defense, the industry is the second." A strong industry always acts as a boost towards a developed defense system. This is exactly what China is trying to do. By slowly encroaching on India’s economy, it is trying to weaken India’s indigenous industrial abilities and capabilities which in the long run, will make our country financially weak, both in economy and defense.


In the recent years, the small and medium scale market segment has been flooded with sub standard Chinese goods. Starting from nail cutters and toys to computer hardware and high end electronic products, you can get everything made in China. Due to their cheap rates, these products are also becoming popular among consumers. However, in this process, our own industries are suffering a set back. Well, industry giants and big businesses can sustain or over throw the competition but it is becoming extremely difficult for small firms and industries to tackle the competition. Says Ashok Khanna, chairman of Indian watch company K-Watch Ltd, “Chinese products, smuggled both from Hong Kong and mainland China, have no guarantees but have taken away a two-third share of the total demand in India”. Considering the situation, it can be well imagined what will happen to the Indian economy if this trend continuous.


It should to be mentioned in this regard that a large amount of Chinese goods come to the Indian market through smuggling. Most of the Chinese electronic items that we buy from the market are smuggled through Nepal. In addition to these, a huge amount of opium and other drugs are daily smuggled to India from China.


The Indian government which had once paid little heed to this problem now seems to be concerned. To tackle such dumping tactics of China, the center has imposed an anti dumping duty on Chinese goods in about 22 cases. According to the Directorate General of Anti-dumping and Allied Duties (DGAD), more such stringent anti dumping laws will follow.


Nevertheless, a lot more needs to done to tackle Chinese intrusion in the Indian economy. In todays perfectly competitive open market, it is virtually impossible to boycott or ban Chinese items. A well planned economic and commercial approach must be applied where our indigenous industries should be given an uplift to match or rather overcome the Chinese market share. Some public awareness also needs to be created regarding the low quality of Chinese goods. Strict customs checks and raids too need to be beefed up to reduce the rate of smuggling.


It’s high time that Chinese invasion into the Indian market is stopped, or else we will be digging our own graves.