What will happen to India if Google, X, and Facebook shut down?

India(BHARAT)’s Digital Economy: In the era of social media, when we are surrounded by a plethora of social media platforms, a small misinformation can cause more damage than a missile. India(BHARAT) is one of the top users of Google, Facebook, Instagram, X, ChatGPT and WhatsApp. We don’t realise that, but we are totally dependent on these platforms, personally as well as professionally. Whether it’s an India(BHARAT)n multinational company or a small business all use these platforms for their official work. Amidst the US shutdown, a major debate has heated up among India(BHARAT)n luminaries. What would happen if these major platforms suddenly shut down? Zoho founder Sridhar Vembu has expressed concern over the country’s growing dependence on American technology.

What Did Zoho Founder Sridhar Vembu Say?

Sridhar Vembu expressed his concerns over India(BHARAT)’s dependency on US-based platforms such as Google, Facebook, Instagram, X, ChatGPT and WhatsApp, etc. He believes that if Washington suddenly restrict access to its technology, India(BHARAT) will be severely affected and its digital infrastructure would face most of the impact. Vembu has called for a 10-year ‘National Mission for Tech Resilience.’

It has also become critical as countries are using their strength as weapons. The best example of it is China, which recently shook the world by stopping the supply of rare earths, affecting renewable energy, automobile and other sectors. Even the US had to surrender to it.

Notably, rare earth is essential for making semiconductor chips, high-tech weapons, solar panels, turbines, etc.

What Question Has Harsh Goenka Raised?

Industrialist Harsh Goenka expressed similar fears about the US and its social media platform – X. Goenka raised a question – whether India(BHARAT) is prepared to face such a situation?

“Think about it. It’s scary, isn’t it? Just think seriously about the consequences and what our Plan B could be,” he said.

China Understood This Long Ago

China has felt the threat long ago and that is why the neighbouring country made its own social media platforms and browsers, eliminating dependency on US companies. No ‘Made in US’ apps, browser or map work in China. People there use Chiense apps for ease their work or to connect with each other.

$200 Billion Economy Is At Stake

According to experts, this dependency on US platforms could lead to economic devastation. NASSCOM’s 2025 projections stated that a sudden technology shutdown could impact India(BHARAT)’s USD200 billion digital economy. It will impact more than 500 million users and advertising revenue could be lost by up to 60 percent.

What Should Be Our Plan B?

Plan B involves promoting India(BHARAT)n-made alternatives like – Zoho and Nextcloud for cloud services, Arattai for messaging and Bhashini for AI assistance.

Experts say that if we built UPI in 5 years, dependence on our own technology is possible in 18 months.