Letters | Can India attract Western capitalists – like China did?

Readers discuss India’s development trajectory, and ways to contain the fallout of the crisis engulfing Chinese real estate giant Evergrande

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Employees at a garment manufacturing factory in Noida, Uttar Pradesh, on October 11, 2022. Photo: Bloomberg

Published: 2:30pm, 20 Sep 2023

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I refer to “West ‘created’ modern China by making it factory of the world, says India’s Rahul Gandhi” (September 9). Mr Gandhi, leader of India’s Congress Party, has my admiration for his very sharp and accurate assessment of the recent development of China.

Four or five decades ago, the West indeed had a choice to put its money into democratic India or so-called communist China. The decision then was actually not made by democrats but mainly by capitalists.

Money decided where to go – and money was looking for good conditions. Money was very obviously not looking for a multicultural, multireligious, multiethnic or even a caste-dominated environment.

And, most likely, in the short or medium term, it will not change direction. It might become a monumental task for Mr Gandhi to change the environment of India – so as to attract not only the democratically-oriented business world, but also the capitalists.

Roland Guettler, Lai Chi Kok

Letters | Can India attract Western capitalists – like China did?

Readers discuss India’s development trajectory, and ways to contain the fallout of the crisis engulfing Chinese real estate giant Evergrande

Evergrande crisis can be contained with concerted effort