Network18 Polls Show 70% of Indians Willing to Boycott Chinese Goods amid Border Tension

A mega online poll involving all Network18 digital and social news platforms, conducted to gauge public sentiment on China in the aftermath of the Galwan Valley clashes earlier this week, has shown that at least 70% of Indians are willing to boycott Chinese goods even if it means paying extra.

Meanwhile, 91% of the respondents said they will stop using Chinese apps and social media platforms and also encourage others to do the same.

Anti-China sentiments in the country have been on the upswing after 20 Indian soldiers were killed in clashes with the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) on Monday night. Protests have erupted in several states, with people and even Union ministers calling for the boycott of China-made good and products.

The poll was conducted across Network18’s websites and social media accounts including CNN-News18, News18 India, News18 Languages, CNBC-TV18, Moneycontrol and Firstpost. It ran for a 24-hour duration from Friday noon and received about 6,000 responses. Respondents were asked a set of nine questions.

Anti-China sentiment prevailed among the respondents, with 70% of them saying they are willing to boycott Chinese goods even if this means paying extra and 92% of them saying they do not trust China.

While a whopping 97% of the respondents want Indian celebrities to stop endorsing Chinese products, 92% of them believe China poses a bigger threat to India than Pakistan. At least 52% of the respondents said India has no allies and has to fend for itself.

More respondents (19.32%) see Russian President Vladimir Putin as a closer ally to India than US President Donald Trump (18.12%).

While Union minister Ramdas Athwale earlier called for Indians to boycott Chinese food and restaurants serving them, many Indians are still unsure about it, with 43% of the respondents saying they would not consume Chinese food and 31% saying food has nothing to do with it.

This is the second poll conducted by News18 to gauge sentiments on China in 15 days. The results of the first poll were published on June 5.