HYDERABAD: For Telangana’s electronic and manufacturing industry to effectively ‘boycott’ Chinese goods in the wake of ongoing hostility between India and China, it is necessary that there is a proper alternative in its place — which as of now is not available in the country, according to the industry experts. The State’s electronic hardware and manufacturing industry, which includes pharmaceuticals, is heavily dependent on Chinese imports. While the size of electronic hardware sector in Telangana’s industry pie chart may be small, pharma sector has a prominent space.
Srinivas Garimella, Industrial Committee chairman in Federation of Telangana Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FTCCI), said that 30 per cent of bulk drugs in the State are sourced from China. “We do not have any alternative to China when it comes to the price point. More importantly, it won’t make a difference to China even if we “boycott” their goods. While China’s exports to India are just two per cent of its total exports, India’s 16 per cent of imports are from that country,” he said, adding that this present situation should be used as a catalyst to boost indigenous production and easing reliance on China.
Recently, T-Works, the State government’s prototyping facility, showed how the Chinese products were more popular in the country than those made in India. Simran Wasu, a protoype engineer at T-Works, dismantled two mosquito repellent rackets — one made in China and the other in India, and compared the prices of various parts. In the plastics section, cost of the handle enclosure shell was found to be `102.80 in India as against `37.20 in China. In fact, a majority of the plastic components — like spacer, flashlight cup, cover and retractable plug — were cheaper in China.
Wasu concluded that if the racket was made in India, its manufacturing cost would be `306.72, instead of the present price of `194.30. Speaking to Express, T-Works CEO Sujai Karampuri, said: “It is impractical to call for a boycott of Chinese products. We are heavily dependent on China. We should use this situation as a learning curve and work towards easing our dependence on products from that country.”
Karampuri further said that not just the government, private players should also look towards investing in indigenous companies and products. Echoing similar views, Telangana Industrialists Federation chief K Sudhir Reddy pointed out that while it would be possible to effectively shift reliance on China when it came to ‘products’, it would not be possible in the case of ‘parts and accessories’.
“Manufacturing industries are heavily reliant on China for accessories. These accessories are integrated into making the final product,” Reddy said. “As of now an alternative for such products does not exist in the country and the government should formulate a policy to give entrepreneurs working in this area a boost in the positive direction,” he added.