To counter China, India needs to first crack down on corruption like Xi did

For years, China was viewed as a cheap manufacturing hub. No longer. When Xi Jinping assumed power in 2012, he made no secret of his intention to move China up the value chain

Rajiv Bajaj, chairman of Bajaj Auto, sounded the alarm last week: If China were to restrict exports of rare earth metals — crucial for magnets in electric vehicles— India’s nascent electric-vehicle (EV) industry could grind to a halt. His anxiety is not unwarranted. As geopolitical tensions rise and trade wars simmer, headlines like these expose uncomfortable truths: The world remains deeply dependent on Chinese supply dominance, and India is no exception. In domain after domain — artificial intelligence (AI), robotics, green energy, and defence — China’s ascendancy is no longer a prediction but a reality. Its stronghold is not accidental;