Monies from Edutech

China has suddenly come down heavily on its domestic $100 billion edutech industry, having decided to stop all online tutoring. This augurs well for India as there could be FDI inflows into the country

- Sujit Bhar

WITH the world accusing China of the Coronavirus pandemic—it was originally called the Wuhan virus in some circles, including in India—there was a race among countries, especially Japan, to pull major industries out of China. Part of this campaign was led by the erstwhile US President Donald Trump. At that time, almost exactly a year back, it was touted that India could benefit from this international animosity towards China. It was rumoured that if India manages to draw companies pulling out of China to India, it would be a massive win-win for the country. India completely lost that opportunity, and soon its own shores were ravaged by the virus, with people dying on the streets and in hospitals, with the economy going into a deep slide alongside.

We were not prepared and we did not show any determination to make the best out of a bad situation. We were rather blind.

As the Coronavirus is under control in China, and even as a tottering India tries to find level-headed solutions, another opportunity—this one is mid-level, but an opportunity, nevertheless—may have landed in India’s lap. It has been a sudden development, and India could not have prepared for this, but it has to be seen if the country has developed even a semblance of determination to handle such issues.