A Compelling & Insightful Foreword by S Jaishankar

Jaganathan

Back in 2005 during my B school days Dr SP Singh used to teach us Geopolitical and Social Environment of Business, we understood it was a connected world with supply chain being the building blocks of diplomatic new world order. Beyond that we were not able to comprehend Geo Politics for the following reasons - lack of practical examples, lack of fair analysis of foreign policy in media at large and thirdly distinctive leadership. 

Distinctive leadership brings with it character, but for a civilizational state like India, distinctive leadership was a tough ask way back in 2000s when coalition ruled the roost with convenience and sacrifices going hand in hand derailing the larger agenda of India.

Dharma by definition is honorable thought and action, it will never be down and out, there could be momentary outages but ultimately it will prevail. Narendra Damodardas Modi was delivering development in Gujarat and rest of India took note off and cut to 2014 India had won and a new era was set to begin with Narendra Modi's slogan India First. Not many understood then and most mistook it for the superficial meaning as nation first. It took close to 7 or 8 years to understand and comprehend what India First really meant.

Modi: Shaping a Global Order In Flux is a book which was released in the last week of February 2023 and my pre order copy was delivered today, Foreword is by S Jaishankar, External Affairs Minister of India. Reading it gave me a new dimension of understanding of how Narendra Modi Government works - it thinks really really long term, a vision to make Bharat Vishwa Guru once again. From what I make out it is just early stages of the foundation for a Civilizational State which has lost out centuries due to invasions and compulsions.

Jaishankar's Foreword does great justice in bringing out the Distinctive leadership that Narendra Modi has brought not just to India but to the world at large. What is best understood is the balance that the government has done in developing the home front as well as building bridges across the world to match our inherent strengths & the emerging strengths due to robust and proactive policy making.

Some key words or phrases poignant with meaning which caught my attention and allows one to ponder and recall key moments in the past 9 years of Modi Era - 

Neighborhood First approach..

Modi 1.0 did away decisively with the hesitations of history...

Others could not veto on India's choices & decisions...

Return to global stage of a civilizational state..

India breaking out of sub continental box to which it has long been confined...

This foreword could have only been so wonderfully written by an ace Diplomat S Jaishankar himself and none else. Each word and sentence is rooted in the vision Narendra Modi and team have for India on a much larger time frame and role than we can comprehend today. All of it tied to a more self reliant India in thought and action - Aatmanirbharta.

This foreword itself should be a prescribed case study in academia to help younger generation understand the depth of transformation that is taking shape in a world full of flux

as we read this. 

Will try and do a series of reviews which are compelling and interesting chapters in this anthology.

 Grandson, Husband and Father of Two, S Jaganathan - is the Founder of The Verandah Club. He is an avid traveller, interested in trendspotting and a firm believer in the philosophy - Dharmo Rakshati Rakshitah.