Focus on soft power strategies at Gujarat meet

NEW DELHI: The 13th Pravasi Bharat Diwas, starting Wednesday in Gandhinagar, will be used by the Narendra Modi government to showcase not just opportunities unleashed by a wave of economic reforms but also emphasize use of India’s soft power to conduct its foreign policy.
Ahead of the event, government sources said Yoga and Gandhi will be the mainstay of this approach to involving the diaspora for carrying out external affairs.At a time when RSS and many in BJP seem to underline artistic and mathematical accomplishments of the Vedic civilization, Modi’s stated desire to again transform India into a "vishwa guru" will likely be the dominant sentiment at the gathering.
"The declaration of June 21 by the UN as annual ‘International Day of Yoga’, following an appeal by PM Modi underlines the possibilities for projecting India’s soft power in the conduct of external relations", said an official.
"The event will also look at the possibilities of projecting India’s rich cultural inheritance from the past and take note of the power of India’s contemporary democratic values, youthful ‘demography’ etc. The participants will discuss how India can maximize its soft power strategies involving use of cultural symbols and settings even for important strategic dialogues on issues like regional security and economic cooperation", he added.

Government sources said the chief ministers attending the 3-day event will highlight opportunities their states had to offer for investments in manufacturing, infrastructure and energy sectors. Modi is likely to talk about economic reforms carried out by the government in the past few months including in coal, defence and railways.
One of the sessions is likely to focus on youth diaspora described by the government as an extended demographic dividend which can play an instrumental role in carrying forth this vision. Foreign minister Sushma Swaraj will address the youth session. This will explore the depth of the linkages of youth diaspora with India’s tradition, culture and philosophy.
The event will take up issues of labour and employment in Gulf countries, which account for $40 billion remittances annually, and help Indian expatriates voice concerns about issues like better pay and employee welfare contracts.