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By:

Rajiv Shah

22 September 2025 at 8:32:23 pm

How Sovereign Resistance Is Challenging US Tech Hegemony

From colonial-era control of trade routes to today’s contest over satellites, data and digital infrastructure, India’s confrontation with American tech power exposes the growing tension between global connectivity, corporate dominance and national sovereignty. The historical memory of colonialism is long, deeply etched into the collective consciousness of the Global South. For centuries, foreign powers arrived on distant shores under the banner of trade, infrastructure, and philanthropy, only...

How Sovereign Resistance Is Challenging US Tech Hegemony

From colonial-era control of trade routes to today’s contest over satellites, data and digital infrastructure, India’s confrontation with American tech power exposes the growing tension between global connectivity, corporate dominance and national sovereignty. The historical memory of colonialism is long, deeply etched into the collective consciousness of the Global South. For centuries, foreign powers arrived on distant shores under the banner of trade, infrastructure, and philanthropy, only to strip sovereign nations of their resources, redraw their laws, and compromise their independence. Today, that old expansionist playbook has been digitised. Instead of physical gunboats and chartered trading companies, the instruments of modern dominion are satellite constellations, algorithms, and cloud infrastructure. The colonial empires of the past understood that control over ports, railways, shipping routes, and communications networks could translate into political authority and economic dependence. In the contemporary world, control over cloud computing, satellite communications, semiconductor supply chains, and the platforms through which societies exchange information can exercise a comparable structural influence, even without territorial occupation. The difference is that the new frontier is governed not only by states, but also by corporations whose technological reach increasingly rivals the capabilities of governments. The brewing geopolitical conflict between the United States and India has brought this “digital colonialism” into sharp, unmistakable focus. The current US administration, executing a hyper-aggressive, unilateral “America First” strategy, has increasingly aligned itself with tech billionaires to treat foreign sovereignty as an administrative hurdle. The recent high-stakes standoff over Elon Musk’s satellite internet service, Starlink, coupled with crushing US economic sanctions and visa freezes, demonstrates how tech monopolies and state power now operate as an interlocking machine. However, the heavy-handed approach has triggered an intense, grassroots nationalistic backlash, proving that the digital architecture of the 21st century cannot be built on the submission of sovereign nations. Digital Colonialism Digital colonialism refers to a structural system where a handful of technologically advanced nations, primarily the United States, use their corporate monopolies to control the digital ecosystem, data pipelines, and critical infrastructure of other countries. Under this model, developing nations are treated merely as data goldmines to be extracted and passive consumer markets to be dominated. For years, Silicon Valley executives utilised a standard “Twitter diplomacy” model to bypass foreign regulations. By leveraging massive digital footprints, corporate giants routinely bullied smaller or less tech-reliant nations into granting sweeping concessions under the guise of “bringing connectivity to the unconnected.” This corporate philanthropy is frequently a Trojan horse designed to secure data monopolies and hook local populations on proprietary, foreign-owned infrastructure. When this corporate pressure fails, the full weight of US state power is brought to bear. The Trump administration’s integrated economic squeeze—imposing massive $100,000-plus surcharges on H-1B visas, threatening universal tariffs on Indian goods, and suddenly freezing Indian tech firms out of the PERM Green Card application process—functions as an economic club. Obviously, it is a deliberate effort to create an asymmetric trap: utilising state tools to strangle a nation’s domestic industries from above, while corporate spearheads like Musk launch high-pressure campaigns to break open its regulatory defences from below. This struggle also belongs to a much longer history of post-colonial economic resistance. The Non-Aligned Movement emerged during the Cold War from the determination of newly independent nations to avoid becoming instruments of competing superpowers. Today, strategic autonomy must extend beyond military alliances and diplomatic manoeuvring to encompass control over data, digital payments, communications networks, and the technological standards that shape economic life. For India and much of the Global South, the challenge is not to reject foreign technology, but to ensure that access to it does not become a new instrument of external leverage. Aggressive Rhetoric The immediate flashpoint of this conflict ignited when Musk publicly accused Indian telecom regulators of committing a “crime against the people of India.” In an aggressive rhetorical campaign, Musk alleged that domestic regulations were designed to maintain a “monopolistic chokehold,” directly targeting Indian business leaders by asking on social media, “Is Ambani the real boss of India?” The underlying reality, however, is a matter of strict national security, not corporate favouritism. The Indian Ministry of Communications flatly rejected the billionaire’s claims, reiterating that Starlink, alongside all domestic and international competitors, must undergo mandatory data security audits and satellite gateway localisation assessments. In a world where data is the definitive currency of national power, allowing a foreign corporation to operate an autonomous, unmonitored satellite network that transmits domestic data directly to overseas servers is a fundamental national security risk. The US strategy fundamentally miscalculates the unique nature of India’s digital landscape. Unlike many regions that rely entirely on Western tech infrastructure, India has systematically built one of the world’s most advanced, self-reliant, and affordable digital public infrastructures, highlighted by the open-source Unified Payments Interface (UPI) and a hyper-competitive, hyper-affordable 4G/5G cellular network. Because India built its own digital foundations, its public and policymakers view foreign attempts to dictate regulatory terms not as a gift of modern technology, but as an existential threat to economic sovereignty. India’s experience carries wider significance because it challenges the assumption that technological modernisation must follow a model designed and controlled by Western corporations. Whether Silicon Valley or Washington understands it or not, the aggressive, top-down strategy has backfired at the grassroots level. In India, corporate bullying by foreign tech magnates does not intimidate the population; it unites them. Consumer groups, digital rights advocates, and everyday internet users have reacted with an intense nationalistic backlash, reframing the dispute from a telecom technicality into a defence of sovereign dignity. Indian consumers are uniquely sensitive to foreign encroachment. When a Western billionaire uses public threats to demand a bypass of national security laws, the public quickly recognises the echo of historical exploitation. This has sparked a growing sentiment that if Starlink refuses to respect the laws of the land, it will be banned not by the paperwork of the government, but by a quiet, devastating boycott by the consumers themselves. The global order is rapidly fracturing. By treating long-standing allies as economic targets and dismantling the international treaties that governed global behaviour, the US is alienating the very markets it seeks to dominate. The stakes extend well beyond the India–US relationship. As the European Union pursues digital regulation, China builds alternative technological ecosystems, and emerging economies seek greater control over their data, the world is moving towards a more contested digital order. Satellite internet is only one part of this struggle; artificial intelligence, cloud infrastructure, digital currencies, and access to critical computing resources will increasingly determine who sets the rules of the global economy. The unfolding resistance in India proves that the days of unchallenged digital colonialism are over. If a foreign entity wishes to operate in the world’s largest open internet market, it must do so as an equal partner, under local laws, and with explicit respect for the sovereignty of the people. No amount of geopolitical leverage from Washington can force a proud, independent nation to buy products from a corporate empire that views them with contempt. Critics argue that these developments point towards a broader, coordinated squeeze on the nation. On one front, the US administration’s shifting stance towards Pakistan signals an attempt to alter regional balances. On the domestic front, a recent public exchange between Elon Musk and opposition leader Rahul Gandhi regarding corporate monopolies has fuelled intense political debate. Sceptics view this digital alignment with caution, arguing that combining foreign corporate pressure with aggressive domestic political protests—which have previously disrupted parliamentary proceedings—risks destabilising the country’s economic and democratic momentum at a critical juncture. Now is the time to be on alert. (The writer is an advocate and a public policy analyst. Views personal)

Bharat’s Jetson Cities, Light-years Away from Nature

Writer: Chaitanya Giri
Chaitanya Giri
Jan 18, 2025
5 min read

Updated: Jan 20, 2025

Jetson Cities

One thing is for certain: our Bharatiya cities, the big metros and towns, are fast becoming like the ‘Jetson’ cities. For those who are unaware of Jetson cities, these were first shown in the famous Hanna-Barbera cartoon series, the Jetsons, set in the 2100s, where cities are air-tight glass globules tethered to the ground, and the only way to get in and out are the flying cars. Yes, we, the city-dwellers, aspire to tall skyscrapers, spectacular bridges, world-class tunnels, swooshing metro trains, and we are building Jetson-like flying cars. A few HD drone images here and there, during the day and at night and around twilight, and we are content that our cities have become the cynosure of our own eyes. We want our cities to be brightly lit, with neon signs, laser shows, and large billboard videos. We would then fulfil our inner desire to have a city on par with Tokyo, New York, and Shanghai.


Our buildings, designed for the next 30 years, are well air-conditioned, shielding occupants from a soupy dust bowl of brown smog, soot, particulate matter, and fine dust. It is said that most new home buyers invest at least 10% of their property’s price in enhancing the interiors, soundproofing their homes, using air purifiers and conditioners, and disconnecting from the outside world for that much-needed solace. Indeed, large builders promote their projects as close to nature amidst tranquillity. However, there is always another builder eager to get one plot of land ahead of yours to enjoy that nature. To be truthful, access to nature now comes at a premium - even the skies.


Let’s assume the working-age population is occupied in the leisure of our Jetson cities, but how many of their young school and college-going kids have seen the long arm of the Milky Way galaxy from their cities? How many have witnessed a comet zooming by? How many know about endemic plants with medicinal properties? When did they last see a chirping house sparrow? How many know that the nearest sewage drain was once a freshwater stream? When did they last find their suburban beach prettier than the resort beaches of Maldives?


The intent to ask these questions is simple: Bharat is currently at a crossroads. Pundits are enthusiastic about a cultural renaissance on the horizon. Corporate leaders, on the other hand, want us to invest hundreds of hours each week to pay our dues to the growth of the national GDP. But no one asks, if a cultural renaissance is to occur, who will generate the new understandings and insights of nature that arise typically during such a period of human advancement? No one is actually asking, for whom are we building the nation if there is no time for children, or worse, if there is no time or intent to have children. In the process of growing rich, we are about to become old. By 2047, 65% of the population under the age of 35 will grow beyond 35 all at once, and we’d have an enormous population in advanced ages with a tapering young population, a graph that looks like a banyan tree. Unfortunately, that young population will have no access to the knowledge that nature has to offer, neither flora and fauna nor the seas and the skies.


Our urbane lifestyles need tempering. Such tempering can occur only if we ensure the revival of natural sciences during this period of cultural renaissance and nation-building. Let’s not rely solely on the educational system. With Indian Knowledge Systems, constructive changes are underway, and academic curricula are poised to improve for the greater good. However, true knowledge arises only when parents and grandparents introduce children to nature. Genuine understanding also develops from extracurricular activities in schools and colleges that encourage kids to observe, journal, and act on their discoveries. On the positive side, our country’s forest cover is increasing, as announced by the government. However, efforts must be made to ensure that every school or college, whether in Mumbai, Vijayawada, Gorakhpur, Ratlam, Thrissur, Bhuj, Faridabad, Imphal, Manali, Cuttack, or Ajmer, guarantees that their students are well aware of the endemic nature of their surroundings and are regularly observing and recording data on whatever interests them. Let kids observe rivers and understand the volume of water that flows through them. Let children learn about the decline of house sparrows in their cities and what steps should be taken to revive their populations. Let them study the bees in their nearby groves and recognise the vital role these bees play in nature.


Of course, you need to learn AI, robotics, fintech, the next generation of management courses, and all the engineering bells and whistles. However, we must not leave the next generation with inadequate comprehension and skills for understanding nature. We must ensure that nature conservation is not merely lip service or a tool for politicised green activists. This can be achieved if natural sciences are given the respect they deserve at the school, undergraduate, and postgraduate levels.


Indeed, I am a plebeian, and you might feel that you, too, could write a rant about the plight of our urban lives. Urban development and municipal experts have many solutions to propose, but few are willing to take action. However, that is not the issue I wish to highlight. I aim to illustrate a much larger concern—that Indian city dwellers are disoriented and devoid of nature, lacking a guiding star to lead them toward a brighter future. Our cities of Mumbai, Delhi, Bengaluru, Ahmedabad, Kolkata, and Chennai have taken on characteristics reminiscent of Jetson-like cities. We show little regard for the Nagar Devata, Gram Devata, and Van Devata, who have protected the cities, towns, and forests that once surrounded us. We wait for formal governance to clean up our beaches, rivers, and ponds without making sufficient efforts to prevent pollution in the first place.


For those striving to grasp spirituality not through the Puranas and Aadi-Granth but through new-age podcasts, I recommend watching Vinay Varanasi’s podcast on Bhagavan Vishnu’s Dashavatar. If it is clear that Bhagavan Vishnu does not tolerate disregard for Bhudevi or Mother Earth, why do we, the devotees of Bhagavan Vishnu, continue to pollute our Mother Earth—her air, soil, waters, and sounds? Or have we taken Elon Musk's words at face value, assuming our next destination is Mars after destroying Earth, only to ruin Mars later, even worse than its current clinically sterile state? If that is the case, then bear with me when I say this: these Jetson cities stand on precarious pillars of ego, victimhood, apathy, and consumerism, waiting to be toppled either by the true harbingers of order or by false prophets. Therefore, teach the next generations to observe nature, appreciate our coexistence with other species, and venerate the forces of nature. By doing so, we humans will be good, at least for the next thousand years. If not, prepare for a bleak future by the end of this century.


(The author is a Space and Emerging Technology Fellow at the Centre for Security, Strategy and Technology, Observer Research Foundation, Mumbai. Views personal.)

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