The opposition ratcheted up the pressure on the Centre this Friday, levelling the same charge of caving to China while the trade numbers are at an all-time high and there is still friction on the border. The crux of their complaint is the reported headroom being given to some Chinese-linked companies in key power projects; Congress says it’s a risk to our MSMEs and to our leverage, not to mention national security.
What put this on the table
It came down to a story in the press. Citing one, MP Jairam Ramesh said four power equipment makers with ties to China and plants in India were let in to the running for some of the government’s most important power work. In his view, that’s a slap in the face to home-grown manufacturers when you’re running a record deficit with them.
The report Ramesh put out has it that the Union Ministry of Power put in for an exemption back in January so these firms – four of them with Chinese connections – could put in bids. He took to social media to say it was chipping away at the already hard-pressed MSME sector.
In a nutshell, here is what Congress is saying:
– An exemption for power tenders was in the offing in January
– You had four Chinese-linked names in the mix
– A record trade gap that is taking a toll on MSMEs
– And then you have the strategic side of things with the border as it is
There is a border issue behind it all
Ramesh put the whole procurement matter in a security context. He talks about the ‘provocative’ way China has been acting in Arunachal Pradesh and pointed to the Medog hydro project as a threat to the Brahmaputra and our water security. He also put forward that we have ceded some of the old patrolling and herding rights in Eastern Ladakh.
Then again, the diplomacy is still going on. The 35th round of the Working Mechanism for Consultation and Coordination on India-China Border Affairs was in Beijing last month. If you read the official line, both sides are happy with the progress in keeping the peace and have kept the conversation open.
And he made a point of Galwan and Pakistan
Ramesh went back to the June 2020 Galwan incident, where 20 of our men were left in Ladakh. His take is that the Prime Minister, on June 19 of that year, gave China a ‘public clean chit’ and in doing so, weakened India’s hand in the run-up to later standoffs.
He also brought up Operation Sindoor, with the Deputy Chief of Army Staff on the record about China’s part in what Pakistan was up to. That, for him, is proof that the way the government is handling China is a form of ongoing ‘capitulation’.
How the other side is responding
Arunachal Pradesh CM Pema Khandu has been firm on this. He’s said the people in the state don’t give any credence to Beijing’s claims and that Arunachal is, and will be, part of India.
As for the Army, they have put to rest some of the talk in the media about new encroachments in Arunachal, calling it baseless. The WMCC and other channels of communication are still in place, which is to say we are trying to steady the ship along the LAC.
The tender row is more than it seems
You have a policy conundrum here: how do you protect your critical assets and your own industry while you manage who you are dependent on? Even if a company has a factory in India, having a Chinese link in the bidding for a core power project is something you have to think about from a risk and supply chain point of view.
Congress will tell you it’s bad timing for the MSMEs, with the trade deficit where it is. For the ones in charge, it’s a matter of juggling what is needed for the infrastructure now with what is required for security down the line, especially with the border and water issues in play.
