Whilst one may argue that the political process and franchise in India has always been inclusive of the people and as the largest democracy in the world, we have amply demonstrated this, the fact of the matter is our politics and policies have over the years been perceived by different sections of society to favour one or the other, depending on which side of the fence you sit on. Rightly or wrongly, each side has its own

The economic downward spiral that started last September led to a massive restructuring, if I may say so, of the politics that is or will be practiced the world over. The election of Barack Obama in the US was a clear indicator that no more was colour, social status or economic status are the criteria to elect leaders to public office, but more importantly, it was the policies of the leaders – inclusive policies that would bring them to power and allow them to unveil their programmes in the government. The subsequent collapse of governments in Finland and near collapses in Ukraine and other nations of Eastern Europe and the world at large, brought out this stark reality that the politics of the future is one of inclusive growth – growth for the people, of the people and by the people.

Ladies and Gentlemen, distinguished guests. I may not be exaggerating when I say we live in turbulent times today – economically, politically and socially, all of which have brought to focus, the urgency and importance to introspect, gauge and re-draw economic policy, social policies and political thinking. What was accepted a year ago in all the three spheres is now passé. Today, it’s survival that is important – economic survival, social survival and in a way, political survival. The events of the last 6 months, have thrown up a whole new set of issues and questions, that we in positions of power the world over either knew and didn’t want to address, as the going was good, or simply bluntly, were not aware of the same.