Will Boycotting Chinese Products Quiver The Indian Fashion Industry Too?
This year has got numerous pall of gloom descended on all of us as we grapple with the idea of war, deaths, and viruses. Our generation has never witnessed a devastating time like this before, the outbreak of COVID-19 has led to various medical as well as non-medical impacts on the world. One of the non-medical impacts of coronavirus has been the fight among politicians all over the world to produce goods within their country rather than import them from China. The deadly outbreak of coronavirus has caused us to not just look at our faces, but deeper into our hearts, our minds, and our country’s well-being. In India, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has propagated a narrative of self-reliance(Atmanirbhar Bharat). The reality behind this propaganda is of course quite simple, if people buy products made fully in India, Indian businesses will benefit, and the economy will do well. The countrymen started backing this idea of banning Chinese products in India majorly when last week, 20 Indian Army soldiers were martyred during a violent face-off with the Chinese military in Galwan Valley, Ladakh. This incident led to anger and outrage among the people, celebrities and veteran Indian cricketers like Harbhajan Singh also decided not to endorse any Chinese brand in the wake of the ongoing tension between the two countries. People are claiming this to be a choice between money or patriotism. There’s no denying in the fact that the Indian fashion industry is also insular, it tends to favor those who have strong financial means and the social connections required to network. But the question is, in boycotting the Chinese products will the Indian fashion industry be hurting itself?
Why Will It Not Be Easy To Boycott Chinese Products?
cosmetics
The COVID-19 crisis has forced numerous store closures and crushed consumer demand for thousands of non-essential fashion goods, damaging various brands from high-end fashion brands to fast fashion. Some of the weakest players in the fashion culture have already filed for bankruptcy and may not survive the storm. From the toys, your kids play with, to the fabrics you adorn; the Indian economy is highly dependent on Chinese investment. “The fact remains that in the absence of a realistic alternative and apt strategy, Chinese products will affect India more than China.” The Confederation Of All India Traders (CAIT) has initiated a new campaign, ‘Indian Goods — Our Pride’. The idea is to embrace and enhance the propaganda to boycott Chinese products and, of course, make them in India. CAIT came up with a detailed list of 500 broad categories and 3,000 products including fabrics and cosmetics that can easily be made in India by the countrymen. The country is moving forward with an aim that by December 2021, imports of Chinese products worth $13 billion to be substituted by local ones.
