After a recent rumor spread across the nation about the Indian government reportedly planning to ban Chinese smartphones priced under $150, the truth of the news has been reversed by the Indian junior IT minister, Rajeev Chandrasekhar.  

In a press conference, he mentioned that while the nation feels obligated to ensure local firms flourish in the smartphone ecosystem, “there’s no such proposal in our ministry.” This particular statement by Chandrasekar confirms the news of no proposal to restrict Chinese phone makers in the sub-$150 price range. 

Even Xiaomi executives had confusion with regard to the existence of such a proposal that plans to ban Chinese smartphones in the Indian market. Later in response to that, they mentioned in their quarterly earnings call this month that they were not aware of such a proposal coming from the Indian government and didn’t hear it from any agencies either. 

Massive decisions like this can bring a drastic shift in the entire smartphone ecosystem helping the local players in India boost their sales. As per the report, it is suspected that the Chinese smartphone brands selling under the $150 category account for about 80% of India’s sales volumes for the quarter through June 2022. Giant brands like Xiaomi, Realme, and Transsion have the most smartphone selling market in the $150 segment every year. 

Banning Chinese brands from selling smartphones in the sub-$150 segment in India could help Indian players to channelize dominance over the market. Brands like Lava and Micromax would regain their position in this category by increasing their sales. The sales of both companies comprised just less than 50% of India's smartphone sales before they were undercut by Chinese brands, which offered better specs at lower prices and eventually went on to dominate the second-largest smartphone market in the world.