In the strongest backing for "Made in India" products and amid trade tension with the United States, three cabinet ministers of Prime Minister Narendra Modi government are promoting use of apps by domestic players who rival Google Maps, WhatsApp and Microsoft. After the United States imposed a 50% tariff on Indian imports in August, Modi has pushed for use of "swadeshi" products, or those made in India. While many industry executives have made public calls to support Indian products, Modi made a direct appeal last month for Indians to scrap foreign goods.
Information technology minister Ashwini Vaishnaw, while giving a media presentation on highway projects last week remarked that he had put together all the slides employing Zoho, a domestic rival to Microsoft's PowerPoint, and without use of Google Maps.
"The map is from MapmyIndia, not Google Maps," the minister said with a smile, referring to an Indian provider. "It's looking nice, right? Swadeshi."
Last week, Vaishnaw made a video clip testing Zoho software and asked people to adopt indigenous products in a post on X that drew 6.2 million views.
American brands are everywhere in India, and they are seen as an aspirational upgrade by millions. While government and private offices use Microsoft (MSFT.O), opens new tab products, many travellers rely on Google Maps to find their way about, and WhatsApp counts India as its biggest market, with more than 500 million users.
