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India not planning to ban Chinese smartphones priced at less than ₹12,000: Report
No such proposal is under consideration at the ministry of electronics and information technology, the report quoted a government official as saying.
Amid speculations that the Union government is planning to ban Chinese firms from selling in India smartphones that cost less than ₹12,000, top government officials, responding to reports in this regard, have said that the Centre, in fact, has no plan to restrict companies from the neighbouring country from the entry-level smartphone market.
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“There is no such proposal under consideration at the ministry of electronics and information technology,” a Livemint report quoted an official aware of developments withing the government, as saying.
The segment on which the ban was supposedly proposed comprises of the entry-level and affordable devices in smartphones and feature phones.
Companies from the world's second-largest economy dominate 63% of the Indian smartphone market as of the quarter ended June, the report further said, citing data from Counterpoint Research.
This is despite diplomatic and military tensions between the two Asian superpowers due to the ongoing crisis in India's eastern Ladakh since May-June 2020.
Also, in the last two years, the government, citing ‘threats’ to national security, has banned hundreds of Chinese apps in India. Additionally, three firms from that country – Xiaomi, Oppo and Vivo – are being probed by central agencies for alleged tax evasion.
Meanwhile, responding to latest reports, the foreign ministry in Beijing said on Tuesday that China would ‘firmly support’ Chinese companies in defending their lawful interests and rights.
