The recent face-off between the Indian and Chinese soldiers in the Galwan Valley in Ladakh has started to show effects outside the border. As the sentiment to boycotting Chinese products gains momentum in the country, the Maharashtra government has announced that it has decided to hold three Chinese investments in the state. These include the investments by Great Wall Motors (GWM), BeiqiFoton Motor and Hengli Engineering. The major investments worth over Rs. 5000 crore were announced as part of Magnetic Maharashtra 2.0 last week and saw GWM sign a virtual Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the state government.
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Speaking about the latest decision by the state government, Subhash Desai, Maharashtra Industry Minister was quoted by NDTV saying, "Yes, the decision was taken after consulting the centre. We have put the projects on hold and are waiting for further directives from the centre."
Great Wall Motors showcased The Haval Concept H at the expo, a Creta rivalling compact SUV
GWM made its India-debut at the 2020 Auto Expo earlier this year and according to the MoU, is setting up its new plant in Talegoan, Pune. The company's investment is worth Rs. 3770 crore and would see the automaker generate over 3000 jobs in the region. In December last year, the Chinese auto giant had signed an agreement with General Motors to acquire its manufacturing facility in Talegaon.
At the time of signing the MoU with Maharashtra, Parker Shi, Managing Director, GMW India had said, "This would be a highly automated plant in Talegaon with advanced robotics technology integrated in many of the production processes. Overall we are committed to $1 billion of investment in India in a phased manner, which is directed towards manufacturing world-class intelligent & premium products, R&D centre, building supply chain and providing jobs to over 3000 people in a phased manner."
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Apart from GWM, the state has also halted the investment from BeiqiFoton Motor that was also scheduled to set-up an electric bus manufacturing facility in Talegaon worth Rs. 1000 crore. BeiqiFoton Motor partnered with PMI Electro Mobility Solution for India operations and the upcoming plant would create about 1500 jobs. Lastly, the Hengli Engineering facility would see the Chinese manufacture hydraulic equipment and has promised an investment of Rs. 250 crore for a new facility in Chakan, Pune.
BeiqiFoton along with Indian partner PMI Electro Mobility announced an electric bus manufacturing facility at Talegaon
Under Magnetic Maharashtra 2.0, the state government signed about 12 MoUs worth Rs. 16,030 crore. The programme also saw the state government sign nine other MoUs with companies from the US, South Korea, Singapore among other domestic players. The tussle between the Indo and Chinese soldiers last week resulted in the death of 20 Indian soldiers with over 40 casualties on the other side.
