“If This Continues, India Might Not Be Able to Endure It”: Chinese Commentary Warns on New Delhi’s Tech Squeeze

The Lead

A commentary from Chinese business outlet Huxiu (虎嗅) argues that India’s sustained clampdown on Chinese tech companies risks becoming self‑defeating, given the country’s deep reliance on Chinese hardware and components. The article, titled “If This Continues, India Might Not Be Able to Endure It,” reportedly contends that prolonged pressure could raise device costs, slow product cycles, and complicate New Delhi’s industrial upgrade plans. Can India sustain a hard line on Chinese firms while scaling up affordable electronics and advanced manufacturing?

The Backdrop

Since the 2020 border clashes in Galwan, India has tightened scrutiny of Chinese technology interests on national‑security grounds. Authorities have banned hundreds of Chinese apps, including TikTok from ByteDance (字节跳动), and kept Huawei (华为) and ZTE (中兴通讯) out of core telecoms deployments. Major Chinese smartphone makers—Xiaomi (小米), Vivo (维沃), OPPO (欧珀), and Realme (真我)—have faced tax probes, compliance demands, and import frictions. Yet Chinese brands still command a large share of India’s smartphone market, while India’s bilateral trade deficit with China has reportedly exceeded $100 billion in recent years, reflecting continued dependence on Chinese intermediate goods.

Supply‑Chain Reality Check

New Delhi’s production‑linked incentive (PLI) schemes have drawn global manufacturers, with Apple’s suppliers expanding assembly in India. But much of the component stack—displays, camera modules, batteries, and tooling—still flows from China or Chinese‑linked ecosystems in Vietnam and elsewhere. It has been reported that customs checks and shifting import rules have periodically delayed parts at ports, squeezing working capital and nudging up retail prices. For Chinese vendors, deeper localization could mitigate policy risk; for India, forcing rapid decoupling risks higher costs and slower technology diffusion across a still price‑sensitive market.

What’s Next

The geopolitical context looms large. As the United States pushes for supply‑chain diversification away from China, India seeks to capitalize—yet it must balance security goals with the scale and cost advantages Chinese manufacturing brings. Huxiu’s assessment underscores the trade‑off: if current pressures persist without a clear settlement path—for example on outstanding tax and compliance cases—India’s consumer electronics boom and Make‑in‑India ambitions could face turbulence. The test ahead is calibration: can New Delhi maintain strategic leverage while keeping devices affordable and assembly lines humming?