Get Good Chinese Checkers

Context: India should attract Chinese investment even while checking it strategically.

Need for Chinese Imports and investments:

• Active Pharmaceutical Ingredient (API) import: g. recently Gland Pharma, opened up its Initial Public Offering (IPO) in India and was readily bought by the Indians despite border tensions.
  • Productivity linked scheme aims to increase API production in India to reduce dependence on China.
• China is now the world’s largest source of surplus savings available for global investment and has also
• China has become a major source of new technology, especially in solar and battery technologies of especial interest to India.

Analyzing the Cold War 2.0: While the West considers China as a hegemon, comparable to Russia in the Cold War period, the 21^st Century Cold War is different: -

• China has reportedly just clinched a wide-ranging trade and investment deal, covering issues including patents, environmental issues and labour rights.
• The US has increased imports from China despite Trumpism and the ban on Huawei’s 5G equipment.

 Way Forward:

• India must join hands with the West to check military and strategic threats from China. One example being the Quad (Japan, South Korea, Australia and India).
• India must build up its own industrial and economic muscle, a precondition for effective defence.
• India must be wary of Chinese equipment: Draw up a security list of sensitive industries and equipment where Chinese participation through trade, takeovers or investment shall be banned.
• Encouraging investments with domestic protection: India needs to empower the ‘unicorns’ due to some kind of protection as provided in the US
  • E.g. Facebook has created special shares giving founders huge voting rights. This ensures that the founders are not easily ousted by rich foreigners.

 Conclusion: The ‘atmanirbhar’ strategy of becoming a global manufacturing hub having over a dozen start-ups valued at over a billion dollars, cannot work without massive imports of components from China.