Hyderabad: Industry bodies and traders noted that it was not practical to ban products and services from China entering the Indian market.
The Union government has time and again categorically stated that a complete blanket ban on products from China is not possible under the rules of World Trade Organisation (WTO).
Many domestic infrastructure companies, power majors and telecom giants depend on equipment and machinery, made in China, as they are cheaper.
The industry bodies noted that if they purchase the equipment from the United States or European Union markets, the production cost will also increase and this in turn will affect the Indian economy.
Besides, China is one of India’s largest trading partners with bilateral trade at $71.5 billion at present.
India imports $61.3 billion worth Chinese products, while exporting $10.2 billion worth goods to Beijing. From a deficit of $37.2 billion in 2011-12, the trade deficit increased to $51.1 billion in the last six years, indicating India’s heavy dependence on Chinese goods.
“Infrastructure equipment used in power, irrigation, road projects are imported from China. The telecom industry and the IT sector are also dependent on hardware from China. It’s not easy to ban products from China based on emotions,” said C. Shekar Reddy, former president CREDAI and CMD of CSR Estates.
K. Sudhir Reddy, Telangana Industrialists Welfare Federation president, said, “As of now it is not possible to replace Chinese products. We will have to wait for the “Make in India” initiative to flourish.”
