oppn parties Hitting China Where It Hurts

News Snippets

  • Union health ministry has asked for warning boards to be put up at central institutions for samosas, jalebis and other fried snack to inform the hiden fat and sugar content in such snacks
  • J&K chief minister Omar Abdullah, his cabinet colleagues and mosr prominent opposition leaders were detained at their homes and not allowed to visit the graveyard of 1931 martyrs
  • Indian Army denied allegations of drone attack on Ulfa-I camps in Mynamar
  • Shiv Sena (UBT) workers traced and assaulted the auto driver who had posted a video saying he will speak only in Bhojpuri and Hindi, and not in Marathi
  • $125K penalty for Infosys unit in the uS in cybersecurity probe
  • Fico identifies 300 items for export to the US, flags products where government may want to push for tariff cuts
  • TCS chief K Krithivasan says spending in the IT sector will pick up only after clarity in trade talks with the US
  • RBI has allowed pledging of gold against loans in the agriculture sector. This is likely to boost the rural economy
  • Chess World Cup: Divya Deshmukh and Koneru Humpy reach the last 16
  • Women's T20 series against England: India lose last match by 5 wickets but win the series 3-2. Coach Amol Muzumdar says bowling was the key takeaway
  • Third Test: A lot depends on K L Rahul (33 not out) and Rishabh Pant if India is to go 2-1 up in the series
  • Third Test: England dismissed for 192 with Joe Root scoring 40. Washington Sundar takes 4 wickets
  • Third Test: Exciting days play on the cards as India lose 4 wickets in chasing 193
  • Congress' woes in Karnataka do not seem to be over as DKS meets Priyanaka Vadra, raising speculation about change in chief minister in the state
  • Delhi HC refused to entrtain an urgent petition to stop the screening of the movie 'Udaipur Files', said the film should be screened for those who are opposing it
Air India CEO says there were no mechanical issues, reacts to probe report of Dreamliner crash in Ahmedabad /////// AI pilots' association lashes out at 'insunuation of suicide'
oppn parties
Hitting China Where It Hurts

By A Special Correspondent
First publised on 2020-09-05 12:36:08

While many observers might think that banning apps achieves nothing, the very fact that China's foreign ministry sought to criticize India's action at a press briefing shows that the bans in several phases have unsettled the Chinese. The Indian government has chosen to ban the apps for two very good reasons - first, they collect data about Indian users and anyone familiar with the way things work in China will know that this data has to be shared with the government there even by private companies and second, although this is a low-level economic action, it has the potential of turning other countries against Chinese apps, as is evident by the US action on TikTok. That, in the long run, will mean that these Chinese companies will lose huge business, and hence revenue, worldwide and it will hit them hard.

Since the Chinese are resorting to deceit and are not serious about negotiating while continuing their misadventure at the LAC, India has to strike at them in all possible ways. The popularity of Chinese apps in India means they have millions of users. Backed by this huge user base, these companies are generating good revenue from the country. If the ban hits their income and if other countries also ban the app, the authorities in China will have to think afresh. Already, there are reports that companies that always procured from China are looking for alternative sources of supply (the Indian garment industry has reported orders from international brands that never looked beyond China) due to the pandemic that originated from China.

India has to hit the Chinese where it hurts and banning the apps can set off a chain reaction worldwide which will definitely hurt them. Hence, while continuing the buildup at the LAC in response to the Chinese threat and while engaging the Chinese in talks at all levels, India must keep on applying economic pressure too. It must use the opportunity presented by the pandemic and the subsequent expansionist policies being followed by the Chinese to turn the world opinion against them and use that to become the preferred destination for companies seeking to shift out of China.