Indian Council of World Affairs

Vice Chancellor, JNU Professor SantishreeDhulipudiPanditji, 

Scholars of International Relations and Friends! 

• It is my pleasure to welcome you to the Second edition of the ICWA Young Scholars Conference on the theme ‘India on the Rise: Foreign Policy in the AmritKaal’.
  
  
• You would recall that during his address on the occasion of the 77^th Independence Day in 2023, Prime Minister Narendra Modi outlined the goal of a Developed India - ‘Viksit Bharat’ @ 2047 when the nation celebrates its centenary of freedom from colonialism. He also labelled the period of 25 years – a quarter of a century – till 2047from now as ‘AmritKaal’ – The Period When the Nectar of Life Flows. He said that this period will not only be a period of national development but also an occasion when the country will play an important role in giving direction to the world.
  
  
• Dear students, what is ‘AmritKaal’ ?You are aware that the world today is going through heightened uncertainty and intense geopolitics. The world is ridden with conflicts and deep polarization. The Indo-Pacific theatre is rife with tensions surrounding the South China Sea dispute, the Taiwan strait and the Korean Peninsula. Great power rivalry is adversely impacting the peace and stability of the Indo-Pacific from the Pacific Island Countries to the Western Indian Ocean.The Ukraine War and the Gaza conflict have brought to light the weaknesses of the liberal international order. There is instability in Afghanistan, Myanmar, Syria, Yemen and Sahel. European security, political and social order is in a state of flux. It is amidst navigating this global churn that each country has to ask itself how to position itself, how to maximize its space for manoeuvre, how to draw advantage in order to best serve the well-being of its people?And this is,in no less measure, true for India - the world’s most populated country.
  
  
• The state of the world today, you would have noticed, is being widely and variously described as ‘global tumult’, ‘global turmoil’, ‘global turbulence’, ‘global ferment’ or ‘global churn’.Amongst these, the phrase ‘Global Churn’ suits the Indian mind-set best. For it aligns with the ‘samudramanthan’ of Hindu mythology which symbolizes ‘the churn in the ocean’ or the churn between the good and the evil, between the gods and demons, between the positive and the negative forces to release amrit or nectar of life, nectar of improved living. It is for this reason that Prime Minister Modi named this period ‘AmritKaal’ when India will strive to grow and redefine its destiny amidst the intense geopolitical churn in the world by riding on the positive and confronting& relegatingto oblivion the negative.
  
  
• As we observe tectonic shifts in global geopolitics, at ICWA, we are also talking about the emergence of a New World Order. How do we take advantage of the current shifts in the world to craft an Order where power and responsibility is more distributed, where the options available to the weakest are maximized, which is people-centric, where neither the relations between countries and peoples nor inter-personal relations are weaponized, where there is harmony, tolerance, co-existence, and where there is long-term stability and predictability? Hindu philosophy talks of creation alongside dissolution – and it is here that we will find our answers.
  
  
• Talking about a rising India, the Minister for External Affairs Dr. S. Jaishankar in his speech to the United Nations General Assembly in 2023 said that, “We, in India, have never seen that as being in contradiction with global good. When we aspire to be a leading power, this is not for self-aggrandisement but to take on greater responsibility and make more contributions. The goals we have set for ourselves will make us different from all those whose rise preceded ours.” Unquote.
  
  
• I would like to make two propositions here. One –

When India rises, India will not rise alone.

In this lies the difference between, say, the rise in the past of the OECD economic power-houses or the current rise of China and the rise of India. The fruits of the growth of the OECD economic power-houses largely remained and remained concentrated in them alone; they could not, for instance, prove to be a locomotive for the Global South’s upliftment but rather resulted in increased disparities in the world. China’s rise, the other example, is seen as ‘aggressive’ by some, a ‘threat’ by others but a ‘challenge’ by all. India’s rise however is seen as being in harmony with the world. Given its size, population and civilizational ethos, India’s rise itself is a global good which has the potential of uplifting the lives of not only its citizens but also of the people of its partner countries through its willingness to share its strengths in various areas such as economy, development assistance, humanitarian assistance, capacity building, and governance. And this sharing of strengths has been and will be irrespective of ideology, religion or political system of the partner country. 

• The second proposition that I would like to make is –

As India rises, a New World Order will emerge
– the two are coterminous with each other.

The AmritKaal will witness both these trends. In the AmritKaal, as India rises, new institutions will emerge domestically to support its rise while some old institutions at home may have to reform or risk becoming defunct. New habits in Governance will be adopted, and we will have to let go of all those which pull us down. Likewise, as the New World Order emerges, new global institutions may come up to support this emergence while existing institutions especially of global governance will have to reform or risk becoming irrelevant. New habits in diplomacy will have to be adopted, while we will have to let go of all that is negative that we are witnessing today. India’s rise and the emergence of a New World Order both will be accompanied by adoption of new norms and the re-defining of goals. We will have to change the culture of lack into a culture of abundance – or sufficiency at the very least. 

• Needless to add, India’s rise is being facilitated by an enabling foreign policy–the contrary can’t be true; and this will have to continue. The foundation of India’s foreign policy is to work towards achieving self-reliance in domestic and foreign affairs which is emphasised through the idea of strategic autonomy and the objective of ‘atmanirbharta’ (self-dependence). Our cultural and historical experiences, ourhistory of diversity and co-existence, have shaped our traditions of statecraft, our approach to governance and diplomacy. India has emphasised its internationalism – ensconced in the phrase ‘vasudhaivakutumbakam’ (the world is a family) - and will continue to engage with the world accordingly. India’s history shows that neither does it follow a “winner takes all” approach to contestations nor is there a belief that the end justifies the means.While striving for justice, peace, and freedom for all nations, India’s foreign policy will continue to advance the interests of its people and will evolve as required over the AmritKaal.
  
  
• It is to discuss these issues, and to explore what young minds think about them, that we are holding this Second ICWA Young Scholars Conference. We have with us both PhD candidates and Post-Doctoral Research Scholars from across India who will be presenting their papers on Indian Foreign Policy and Changing Geopolitics, India as a Net Security Provider and India as a Development Partner. From North India, we have scholars from University of Jammu, Central University of Himachal Pradesh, Dharamshala, University of Allahabad, Prayagraj. From East India, we have scholars from NEHU, Shillong and University of South Bihar, Gaya. From the South – from Mahatma Gandhi University, Kottayam andManipal Academy of Higher Education, Karnataka. From the West and Central India, we are joined by scholars from Central University of Gujarat, Vadodara and from Dr.HarisinghGourVishvavidyalaya, Sagar. We also have discussants and participants from seven universities based in Delhi NCR. Dear scholars, it is in your lifetime and during your careers that these momentous changes that I just talked about will take place. You are the torch-bearers of ‘AmritKaal’!
  
  
• Now I would like to give the floor to Madame Vice Chancellor. As the first woman Vice Chancellor of Jawaharlal Nehru University with a teaching and research career spanning more than three and a half decades marked by several accomplishments, it is our privilege to have you deliver the keynote address today. The scholars will immensely benefit from your guidance.

Madame, the floor is yours.

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