NO, Government is not banning Chinese phones under Rs. 12000 in India

Government sources have denied any plans to ban Chinese smartphones selling with a price under Rs. 12,000. Here are all the details.

Indian government has no plans to ban Chinese smartphones, say sources. (Priya / HT Tech)

The smartphone industry was left shocked after reports of the Indian government planning to ban Chinese smartphones in the sub- ₹12,000 category went on air. Many had taken to social media to question this move and how the government would work around this, given that local India brands cannot quite match the overall quality of devices sold by Chinese brands. It trunks out that those reports raised false alarms and there are no such plans cooking inside the government offices.

Based on a new report from CNBC TV18, it is said that government sources with the knowledge of the matter have denied any such discussions within the offices. It is said that there are no plans at the moment to ban Chinese entry-level smartphones in India. The smartphone space in the sub- ₹12,000 segment is currently dominated by brands such as Transsion and Realme, who keep launching affordable new phones frequently.

Government not planning to ban Chinese phones

While the government is yet to give an official statement regarding this subject, we have lately seen the various government agencies raiding several Chinese manufacturers for tax evasions and money laundering. The case includes leading brands such as Xiaomi, Vivo, Oppo, Huawei and more.

Initially, it was said that the ban on Chinese brands under Rs. 12,000 was charted out to help local India brands capture some market share. However, Indian brands have been struggling with the choice of products in this category. Micromax revamped its game with the In series smartphones two years ago but has failed to make an impact. The same goes for Lava and other brands, who have all been struggling to come up with a competitive product.

Currently, it is Xiaomi that was found to dominate the market in Q2 2022, followed by Realme and Vivo in lower places. Xiaomi's Redmi 10 series devices have helped with the numbers whereas the Realme C series has done good for itself as well.