India Moves To Check China’s Advance Into Sensitive Sectors Such As Power And Telecom, Tightens Rules

Moving to check China’s advance into power transmission and telecom, the government has decided to tighten rules for businesses entering in such sensitive sectors, Economic Times has reported.

Indian business and experts have long been raising the issue of threats that Chinese involvement in sectors such as power and telecom pose to India’s security. Indian firms, in particular, have complained that they do not get access to Chinese markets despite India giving Chinese firms access to sensitive sectors.

Currently, Chinese firms such as Harbin Electric, Dongfang Electronics, Shanghai Electric and Sifang Automation either supply equipment or manage power distribution networks in 18 major cities in India.

Government is now looking at a report prepared by the Central Electricity Authority (CEA) that sets new conditions for firms bidding for power transmission contracts. The report, according to a source quoted by the daily, says that companies looking to invest in India should have been operating in the country for at least 10 years, have Indian citizens as top executives, and employees of the foreign firm should have lived in India for a certain period.

For the telecom sector, the ministry of electronics and information technology has asked 21 smartphone makers, most of them Chinese, to provide details about the "safety and security practices, architecture frameworks, guidelines, standards, etc followed in your product/services in the country."

These moves come soon after the government reportedly blocked a Chinese firm's $1.3 billion takeover of an Indian drug-maker as it involved transfer of sensitive technology. The development also follows United States President Donald Trump’s decision to crack down on China’s trade practices.