India@70 ready for relationships of equals

As India marks its 70th year of Independence, India Inc. CEO and Founder Manoj Ladwa spells out the contours of what a more proactive UK-India partnership could look like.

In the 70 years since independence, the UK’s bilateral relationship with India has undergone many twists and turns, but the biggest change can be seen in India. India’s technological and economic transformation in recent decades has been enhanced by liberalisation.

India now has its first Prime Minister born after the Partition – Narendra Modi – whose reforms have put India on a trajectory of taking its proud place as a modern, global nation with a pioneering, innovative economy. Such has been the transformative impact, that the balance of power between the UK and India has rapidly shifted and India is now exercising its prerogative to set the terms of its bilateral partnerships with its major allies.

The UK can no longer take the UK-India relationship for granted. To enhance UK-India ties, the UK must do all it can to be a part of that transformation. The country’s bilateral relationship with India relies on a great deal more than facilitating trade across our borders. There are larger goals to pursue, like the enhancement of ties across our financial markets, the exploration of new technologies – particularly the new digital technologies that have done so much to boost business growth in both countries – and expanding our joint military exercises and defence partnerships in a world where security challenges are changing rapidly on a global level.

After Brexit, the UK’s growth depends on trusting India with a stronger partnership.