Its truly a Chinese invasion this winter

New Delhi, Dec 7: Pragati Maidan,12:30 pm: Mahendra Nath Reddy of Hyderabad and his wife Padmaja walked out of China Engineering & Com...

New Delhi, Dec 7: Pragati Maidan,12:30 pm: Mahendra Nath Reddy of Hyderabad and his wife Padmaja walked out of China Engineering & Commodities Fair today splurging Rs 5,500 on a string of pearls. The Reddys are no stranger to oysters. Their city is home to India’s biggest pearls market. But theReddys had a good reason to spend on what the Chinese oystersproduce.“Yes, Hyderabadi pearls are good, but these are different. Weare buying them just for fashion,” said Mrs Reddy.

Delhi housewife, Kiran Bansal, splurged her cash on something else. AtRs 500 apiece, Mrs Bansal picked up two Chinese pashmina shawls at lessthan half the price of a Kashmiri one. A Kashmiri pashmina retails foranywhere between Rs 1,500 and Rs 2,000 or more. “Now I too can fulfillmy desire of wearing a pashmina. It’s so comfortable,” she said.

A slew of Chinese consumer goods ranging from foodstuff to shoes to pensand pencils, medicines and health products, sunglasses and leather have beenspread out at the four-day fair at Pragati Maidan. All sellingat dirt cheap prices.

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Sample this: energy saving lamps are available for just Rs 100, shoescome for Rs 100 to Rs 300, pens and pencils for loose change that addsup to a few paise, no more. Mosquito repellants come close to Rs 100.And GoodKnight to that!Several engineering and infrastructure gadgets are on display as well.It’s truly a Chinese invasion this winter.Yet, one thing’s missing. Something that every Indian child would loveto have. As do countless children the world over. The shelves simply arebereft of toys.“There are separate specialised fairs just for toys,” explained a CIIofficial. CII is the co-sponsor of the show that has attracted skeptics,enthusiasts and curious onlookers alike, gathered here to unravel thegreat mystery and scare of a Chinese invasion that of late has loomedfrom across the Great Wall. Or so, feels Indian Industry.But, while Indian industry is in a frenzy to stave off the dragon, thelay folk are simply not interested. “Chinese goods are cheap and ofgood quality. So I will definitely go for them,” said Ms Bansal.Yet another consumer who came visiting, was more considerate.“PoorIndian businessmen. They will all be finished. They’ll get completelywiped out. The Chinese are producing such cheap and quality stuff thatour industry will find it hard to compete. Sometime back, at this veryfair, an Indian company was selling mosquito repellants for Rs 600. Now,the Chinese are selling them for just Rs 100 or so,” said Gurdev Singh,a transporter.

A group of businessmen hanging out near a stall displaying electricalgadgets were in deep conversation.“Yes, they are selling goods dirt cheap. But we are at par with them as far as quality goes. Let the governmentreduce excise and sales taxes and we’ll also be able to compete,” saidUmesh Goyal, a small-scale brassware maker from Aligarh.“We have been protected for the last 50 years. And now we are suddenlybeing thrown into this competitive world. We have very, very tough timesahead,” confessed radiator manufacturer Baljeet Singh. That’s domesticindustry for you, ruminating on India’s socialist past againstcompetition from Communist China.Come, walk into the global village, where owner’s pride is indeedneighbour’s envy.