R Krishna Das
Prime Minister Narendra Modi today laid the foundation for India@100 with a vow to strengthen the country as the next 25 years will witness a shift in the global order.
And India is all set to become the only counter to China in Asia. The last 25 years were about making India visible on the global stage, the next two and a half decades would be about developing India’s geopolitical and economic might.
The unfolding global developments substantiate it. The recent events in Ukraine and the Taiwan Strait have given dimension to it.
Even if China takes over Taiwan militarily and politically, controls the Taiwan Strait that is critical for global supply chains and trade, the West will have to rely on India to play a crucial role in any security arrangement. Over the years, one can envisage a New Delhi-led Asian security arrangement to counter Beijing.
For this, India has to strengthen its economy. After all, any country’s geopolitical power passes through its economic avowal. India’s exports are less than one-eighth with a negative trade balance compared to China’s global exports of $2.65 trillion.
For the next one or one and a half decades, India must concentrate on wealth creation with focus on the smallest entrepreneur in the remotest corner of the country. The foundation for any security arrangement 20 years from now would depend on India’s economic partnerships with key nations including Russia and Japan.
As a $5 trillion economy in the next five years and $10 trillion, say in 2035, India will emerge as the world’s third-largest economy. It will be in a position to run an unchallenged and unquestionable sphere of influence in a multi-polar world. Subsequently, becoming the only counter to China in Asia and becoming a key ally for the West.
India@100 will not be about ensuring Swachh Bharat or clean portable water for all. After having completed a hundred years since colonial rule, it would be looking to fill the space in a multi-polar world. An ageing China, weakened Japan and Russia, and a divided European house will help India to rise and shine.
