India, a burgeoning market with a population of 1.4 billion and leading global economic growth, has been ambitiously aiming to become the "global manufacturing hub" in recent years.
From the introduction of the "Make in India" initiative to extending olive branches to multinational giants like Tesla, the Indian government's ambitions and efforts are evident.
However, the reality is starkly different from the ideal.
A series of events have shown that the rise of Indian manufacturing is fraught with thorns and challenges.
Undoubtedly, the momentum of India's manufacturing industry is strong, backed by its unique advantages, government policy support, and the active layout of foreign enterprises.
India's greatest confidence lies in its vast population size.
With a population of 1.4 billion, there is an almost unlimited labor supply and a huge potential consumer market.
More importantly, India has a young population structure, with an average age of less than 30 years, which is in sharp contrast to China's increasingly aging population.
Advertisement
The strong consumer demand of the younger generation provides a broad market space for India's manufacturing industry.
To seize the opportunity of the times, the Indian government has frequently taken action in recent years, trying to turn the slogan of "Make in India" into reality.
From simplifying approval processes and providing tax incentives to establishing special economic zones and increasing investment in infrastructure construction, the Indian government has pulled out all the stops to attract foreign enterprises to invest and set up factories.
Tesla CEO Musk has repeatedly expressed his intention to set up a factory in India, which also indirectly confirms the determination and strength of the Indian government's efforts to attract investment.
The favorable policies and market temptations have attracted many multinational enterprises to turn their eyes to India.
Foxconn, Apple, Samsung, Xiaomi...
These well-known giants have successively established factories in India, trying to get a share of the cake on this land.
Foxconn has even regarded India as an important part of its global layout, not only establishing an iPhone processing factory but also actively expanding Android phone processing business.
The scale and number of employees of its factories in India are quite considerable.
However, just as a coin has two sides, the opportunities and challenges of India's manufacturing industry are always inseparable.
Foxconn's experience in India is a vivid example: its iPhone processing factory has made a lot of money with stable orders and mature production lines; while the Android phone processing factory has fallen into trouble due to being robbed of orders, the resignation of executives, and the loss of employees.
This can't help but make people think, where is the future of India's manufacturing industry?
In the uproar of "Make in India", some deep-seated problems gradually emerge, becoming the bottleneck that restricts the development of India's manufacturing industry.
The lag of infrastructure, the shortage of talent, and the deterioration of the business environment...
These problems are like lingering shadows, hovering over the Indian manufacturing industry.
Electricity and water resources are the lifeblood of the development of the manufacturing industry, but these two most basic elements have become the difficulties that trouble the development of India's manufacturing industry.
India's infrastructure construction has been lagging for a long time, and the lack of electricity supply and unstable voltage are the norm.
Many factories have to prepare their own generators, which undoubtedly increases production costs.
The shortage of water resources is also very serious, especially in extreme high-temperature weather, the contradiction between water supply and demand is more prominent, and even affects the normal production of factories.
What is even more worrying is that India's largest river, the Ganges, is also troubled by pollution.
This not only affects people's daily life but also restricts the industrial development of the coastal areas.
Although India has a large population base, the level of education is generally not high, and there is a serious shortage of high-quality technical workers.
Many young Indians lack basic industrial skills and professional quality, and it is difficult to adapt to the production requirements of modern factories.
In sharp contrast, Chinese workers are known for their hard work and strong learning ability.
They can quickly master new skills and adapt to different jobs, which is one of the important reasons for the rapid development of China's manufacturing industry.
If India wants to compete with China in the manufacturing industry, the talent problem is an insurmountable hurdle.
If infrastructure and talent problems are the "hard injuries" of India's manufacturing industry development, then the poor business environment is the "soft underbelly" that makes foreign enterprises hesitate.
The Indian government departments are inefficient, policies change frequently, and corruption issues also occur from time to time.
For foreign enterprises, investing and setting up factories in India not only has to face the pressure of market competition but also has to deal with various uncertain factors and potential risks.
The attitude of the Indian government towards foreign enterprises is also unpredictable.
On the one hand, they warmly welcome foreign enterprises to invest and promise to provide various preferential policies; on the other hand, they often investigate and fine foreign enterprises for various reasons, and even force technology transfer.
This practice of "two faces" makes foreign enterprises feel at a loss and also seriously damages India's international image.
Walmart, Google, Amazon and other multinational giants have all had disputes with the Indian government over tax issues and have been fined huge amounts.
The experience of Xiaomi and other Chinese mobile phone brands in India has made many Chinese enterprises vigilant about the Indian market.
The Indian government has suppressed Chinese mobile phone brands such as Xiaomi with trumped-up charges such as "endangering national security" and even frozen their assets in India.
This kind of practice is no different from "killing the goose that lays the golden eggs", and will only damage India's own interests in the end.
In order to obtain greater benefits, some Indian financial groups do not hesitate to use their influence to exert pressure on foreign enterprises that have a competitive relationship with them, and even resort to some improper competitive means.
The unfair treatment that some foreign enterprises have encountered in India, including being forced to raise processing prices, being troubled by government departments, and being investigated without reason, has not been reported publicly, but it is no longer a secret in the circle of foreign enterprises.
This has also led more and more foreign enterprises to start reevaluating their investment strategies in India.
As the world's largest electronic product processing enterprise, Foxconn's investment scale and influence in India are significant.
However, facing the relentless pressure of Indian financial groups and the complex and changeable market environment, Foxconn's future in India is also full of challenges and uncertainties.
On the one hand, Foxconn has established a complete industry chain in India, with mature production experience and a large number of employees.
Leaving India means huge sunk costs; on the other hand, if it continues to stay in India, Foxconn will have to face the competition and pressure from Indian financial groups, and may even be "sniped", following the footsteps of Foxconn and Compal.
Is it to survive in the cracks, or to find another way?
Foxconn's choice may also become a weather vane for other foreign enterprises to observe the direction of the Indian market.