Diplomacy

Modi showcases India’s soft power in Paris

- by Manish Chand

India’s soft power glowed on a radiant spring morning in Paris. Yoga, sustainable development, cultural connections, the transformative power of education and the spirituality of Sri Aurobindo vied for the attention of a mixed audience of the French and the Indian community as Prime Minister Narendra Modi spoke at the UNESCO headquarters.

Amid chants of Modi, Har Har Mahadev and Vande Matram, the Indian leader, dressed nattily in bandgala suit, walked inside the UNESCO headquarters and unveiled his vision of an empowered India animated by universal education, religious pluralism, modern technology and harmony of man with nature.

He began his visit April 10 to the UNESCO headquarters by paying homage to the statue of Shri Aurobindo, India’s sage-philosopher-poet, and lauded his “belief in the unity of individual consciousness with the world outside.”

“There is much that we can learn from his humanism and spiritualism, from his belief in the unity of individual consciousness with the world outside; the enlightened purpose of education; the service of science; and, the unity of world, founded on national freedom, diversity of civilizations and autonomy of culture,” Mr Modi said.

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Bonjour Paris! Boat ride, business and new energy

- by Manish Chand

Paris has rolled out the red carpet and springtime chestnut blossoms to serenade India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi, kindling hopes for flowering ties and fructifying deals in a host of areas, ranging from civil nuclear energy and defence to trade and investment.

It seems nothing can wrong on this beautiful and blessed day in Paris as the leaders of India and France get ready for full-spectrum talks and a boat ride on the sinuous Seine. Paris is determined to charm Mr Modi and honoured him with a majestic welcome at Elysee Palace. It’s business from the word go as the prime minister braced for two back-to-back round tables: one with French CEOs discussing infrastructure as a theme, and the second one will deal with defence technology, France’s forte.

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Remaking of India: Dovetailing Diplomacy & Development

- by Manish Chand

It’s time for making and remaking of India, an ancient rainbow civilisation transforming into a modern nation and an emerging powerhouse that is spawning a new narrative of renaissance, resurgence and renewal. The India Story is back in global circulation, with international rating agencies and bankers conjuring up cheery forecasts for growth prospects of Asia’s third largest economy. The IMF and the World Bank have already predicted that India’s economic growth will surpass that of China’s by 2016-2017, a prognosis that has been reinforced by Asian Development Bank and other trend-trackers.

The Economist has encapsulated this new mood of ‘India Optimism’ in its recent cover story entitled “A chance to fly.” The prestigious British magazine says India has a rare opportunity to become the world’s most dynamic big economy,” but adds on a cautionary note: “The potential is there; the question has always been whether it can be unleashed.”

If the potential of 1.2 billion people of India and their surging dreams has to be realised, the Modi government in India will have to walk the talk on second-generation economic reforms (and it is already doing so by going ahead with crucial reforms in a host of areas, including raising the FDI cap in insurance and telecom). But the success of the India story in the coming months and years will also depend on how New Delhi leverages its growing global stature and harnesses its external relationships and multiple strategic partnerships through smart diplomacy to stimulate an Indian renaissance.

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French CEOs upbeat about India Story, Make in India

- by Manish Chand

PARIS: The India Story is shining bright in France, Europe’s heavyweight economy, with top French CEOs of big-ticket corporates striking an upbeat note about pouring investments into Asia’s third largest economy and voicing their enthusiasm about Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Make in India mission.
With Mr Modi’s Europe agenda being primarily economic, fittingly around 50 top CEOs of India and France brainstormed in Paris to spur the flow of two-way of investment and outlining a concrete roadmap for imparting a fresh momentum to multifarious economic relationship between the two counties.
In his interaction with the French business community, Mr Modi, who begins his four-day visit to France April 9, is expected to make a robust pitch for more French investments in a wide array of areas, including in his pet project of smart cities.
There were free and frank discussions on issues relating to investment and ease of doing business in India and France, Mr Dhruv M. Sawhney, co-chairman of Indo-French CEOs Forum and chairman & MD of Triveni Turbine Limited, told Indian journalists at Hotel Plaza Athenee in the heart of the elitist Champ Elysees.
The CEOs Forum culminated in the leaders of Indian and French business, setting up four task forces in areas of energy, water, infrastructure financing and life sciences.

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