India: Emerging Power

Rating:
Summary: It is emerging, but how far will it go?
Review: In the late 1980's the news media were full of stories about how there was a fundamental shift of economic and political power from North America and Europe to the western rim of the Pacific Ocean. Japan appeared to most to be an economic juggernaut and the Chinese economy was rapidly expanding. The Asian tigers of Taiwan, South Korea, Singapore, Thailand and Malaysia also appeared to be smaller, yet very powerful economic entities. India was only rarely mentioned, and then largely as an afterthought. I remember India being mentioned largely in stories about the expansion of Chinese military power and how that power would affect the long-standing border dispute between India and China.
However, the scenarios of a world economically dominated by Japan proved to be wrong. The Japanese economy tanked and the Tigers went through a period of economic recession. However, the Chinese economy merely hiccuped and continues to grow at a very impressive rate. India has now emerged as a significant power, some areas of American high technology are largely controlled by Indian expatriates. In previous years, the jobs outsourced from the United States were in labor intensive manufacturing and reappeared in Mexico and Central America. Now, many of the jobs are in the software development and support areas, where India has gone from almost nothing to a major player. Approximately ten years ago, when I interviewed people who had received their computer science education in India; almost all of them had very little hands-on experience with computers. Most of their programs were written out and graded by the instructor without ever having been run on a computer.
The question now, and it is one with major implications for the global balance of power, is whether India can overcome its very serious problems and become a great power if not a superpower. It is still the home country of an enormous number of extremely poor people and religious, ethnic and caste differences create social problems that are very difficult to solve. There is also the continuing rivalry with Pakistan and the ongoing low-level conflict over the Kashmir region. Given that both India and Pakistan possess nuclear weapons, it is generally conceded that the most likely eruption of a nuclear war is between Pakistan and India.
I was very impressed by this book, particularly in the areas of the conflict between India and Pakistan and the descriptions of how the Indian leadership sees itself and the role of India in the world. There is a tendency to simplify the rivalry between India and Pakistan, ignoring the roles of Iran, Afghanistan and China. While Pakistan has the military power to stand up to India, it is inherently much weaker economically. The alliance between China and Pakistan has been fairly strong for many years, forcing India to consider potential Chinese reactions to any move India may make against Pakistan. The actions of India in regards to her weaker neighbors of Nepal, Bhutan and Bangladesh also made interesting reading. In some sense, India has been very much a bully, the foreign policies of Nepal and Bhutan are largely made in New Delhi.
Cohen also spends a great deal of time in describing the Indian tendency to approach events with a morally superior tone. While this is quite natural for a nation with such an extensive history, it creates problems when brutal power politics is being applied. India's two primary leaders after independence, Mahatma Gandhi and Jawaharlal Nehru both used moral superiority arguments in guiding India to independence. However, practical politics meant that force had to be used, arms purchased and relationships with other nations had to be managed. This tends to cool the moralistic ardor, but does not cancel it completely.
It is clear to all that the real question is whether India can become a great economic power. For if it can, then it will grow far more powerful than Pakistan, and the real rivalry in Asia will be between India and China. Cohen makes the arguments for both the affirmative and negative, but takes no firm position. That is a wise move, as there is enough underlying political instability to derail any movement towards economic superpower status.
India and China both have the potential to reach superpower status in at most a few decades, with China almost certain to do so. However, the status of India is less certain, there are as many reasons to believe they will as there are to believe that they won't. Cohen makes all the pro and con arguments, drawing from military, economic, religion and cultural resources. It is time that the United States once again takes an interest in India and from this book, you can learn a great deal about how India views itself, the other countries in south Asia, and the rest of world. I consider the book must reading for anyone interested in how the relationship between India and the United States should be managed.

Rating:
Summary: Good recognition to a sleeping super power
Review: After reading this book, it is certain that author is not a new
about India and has knowledge of every aspects of indian attitude
and why it is poised to become to become a power to reckon with.
India has not only succeded in providing the world best technology savvy people but also a ground where ideal thoughts have been originated such as Hinduism, Budhism, Sikhism and Jainism. Not only that india is a land of respect for all religion and various possible thoughts that a human being can have. Certainly world has to know about India through this book.

Rating:
Summary: great resource on India since 47
Review: As India became an independent nation in 1947, it became the world's second largest country in population and the world's larges democracies. Cohen in India:Emerging Power looks at how India has been advancing since 1947. Cohen looks at the different influences on India such as non-alliance, the Nehru view, and the Gandhi view. Cohen also deals deals with India's interactions with other countries such as the Soviet Union and later Russia, United States, Africa, China and other South Asian countries. Cohen also looks at some of the more well known issues of India such as its military. It relied on Soviet Aid for a long time but was never able to get as much as it wanted. Cohen looks at American influences on the Indian military and its desire to become an arms exporter. Cohen also looks at India's nuclear program and its relations with Pakistan. He goes through the history of the conflict and how nuclear weapons. It also deals with INdia's relations to the United states and about how the two countries can work togheter.

Rating:
Summary: Workmanlike but over-optimistic book
Review: Cohen's book covers a fair amount of ground and will be useful to someone who has not read much on India. However, this width of coverage almost inevitably means that depth of analysis is sacrificed.

This is particularly noticeable in the discussion of India's foreign policy, in the twists and turns that Cohen takes trying to explain India's stand on the Kashmir question, and especially in the over rosy view of the Indian economy. The latter is still bedevilled by an aggregate fiscal deficit of over eight percent of GDP and by the spending of states being out of contro. Cohen also takes a rather facile view of the increase in foreign exchange reserves. These have increased largely because interest rates in India are so much higher than in the West that expatriate Indians are depositing their money in India. This could be temporary. Moreover, the very same high interest rates that attract these funds act as a serious disincentive to investment. The high cost of capital has been identified by most Indian economists as the chief impediment to future investment and growth.

Rating:
Summary: The book takes you nowhere.
Review: I believe the author needs to ask a question to himself -
What is the objective of this book ? Because the author takes you nowhere. I was more than frustrated after reading the first 4 chapters.
There was a story in a leading Pakistani Daily in 1999 that a lot of money was funneled into US based think-tanks by Pakistany authorities in 1998-99 in order to publish material that speaks for Pakistan by targetting India. I believe this book is a product of that effort.
This book actually fails to address the core issue and gives you the impression that the author had no objective in his mind when he wrote this book.
Please do NOT read this book ? Let alone buying it.

Rating:
Summary: One of the best Review about South Asia
Review: Its one of the best book in the market about South Asia
And i agree with the author that India is going to be a Power in South Asia
As USA and the free World have one thing common with India and that is Democracy and to work hard and live in a civilized world

Rating:
Summary: Workmanlike but over-optimistic book
Review: Stephen P Cohen contends that India's power is balanced and paradoxical. Its economy is thriving, yet it is likely to contain over half of the world's poorest people. Its strategic elite is ambitious, yet it has been unable to translate its civilization distinctiveness into international influence and respect. Further, while India has long been praised as the `world's largest democracy', the logic of democracy has triggered a series of domestic revolutions that are transforming the economy, the unique institution of caste, the relationship between India's states and the central government, and India's very identity. Cohen further argues that the United States should build on the recent warming in the relations between the two countries to ensure that India does not turn hostile and threaten to block American policy initiatives.While India is now emerging as a major pan-Asian power, this evolution will be conditioned and shaped by a series of dramatic internal social and political developments that are transforming much of India. These developments will occupy the attention of Indian politicians for years. The author is of the view that as a strategic power, India is likely to continue its cautious policies toward China. India's relations with Pakistan present another area of vulnerability and that New Delhi seems unable to develop a strategy that would resolve the Kashmir crisis.The author has covered almost all aspects of the Indian History and suggested an overwhelming future but Economy of India has not been given due coverage. His entire thesis of emergence of India is based on the existing growth rate, which is about 6 %. However, Means of Production and Services Sector etc have not been covered with rationale. In this connection it is recommended that "The world in 2020" by Hamish McRae be read, which hardly shows any tangible change in the Indian Economy by the year 2020. An entire chapter dealing Economic aspects would have given the real picture of "future of India". In the book one finds a lot of repetition of events. Even some of the chapters could have been lumped together to provide concrete material. One finds most of the chapters without addressing the main issues. The author has not covered the various ongoing separatists' movements in India and their repercussions on the overall stability and the growth of India. Though he has touched upon the movements in Tamil Nadu and Kashmir. He has suggested that until Kashmir Dispute is not resolved the chances of status quo in the region remains. The author has given a lighter touch to the critical role of the RSS/BJP, their popular agenda and the future of the so-called Secular State. The dangerous consequences of this revivalist movement have not been appreciated fully.

Rating:
Summary: Emerging or Merging Power
Review: Stephen P Cohen contends that India's power is balanced and paradoxical. Its economy is thriving, yet it is likely to contain over half of the world's poorest people. Its strategic elite is ambitious, yet it has been unable to translate its civilization distinctiveness into international influence and respect. Further, while India has long been praised as the 'world's largest democracy', the logic of democracy has triggered a series of domestic revolutions that are transforming the economy, the unique institution of caste, the relationship between India's states and the central government, and India's very identity. Cohen further argues that the United States should build on the recent warming in the relations between the two countries to ensure that India does not turn hostile and threaten to block American policy initiatives.While India is now emerging as a major pan-Asian power, this evolution will be conditioned and shaped by a series of dramatic internal social and political developments that are transforming much of India. These developments will occupy the attention of Indian politicians for years. The author is of the view that as a strategic power, India is likely to continue its cautious policies toward China. India's relations with Pakistan present another area of vulnerability and that New Delhi seems unable to develop a strategy that would resolve the Kashmir crisis.The author has covered almost all aspects of the Indian History and suggested an overwhelming future but Economy of India has not been given due coverage. His entire thesis of emergence of India is based on the existing growth rate, which is about 6 %. However, Means of Production and Services Sector etc have not been covered with rationale. In this connection it is recommended that "The world in 2020" by Hamish McRae be read, which hardly shows any tangible change in the Indian Economy by the year 2020. An entire chapter dealing Economic aspects would have given the real picture of "future of India". In the book one finds a lot of repetition of events. Even some of the chapters could have been lumped together to provide concrete material. One finds most of the chapters without addressing the main issues. The author has not covered the various ongoing separatists' movements in India and their repercussions on the overall stability and the growth of India. Though he has touched upon the movements in Tamil Nadu and Kashmir. He has suggested that until Kashmir Dispute is not resolved the chances of status quo in the region remains. The author has given a lighter touch to the critical role of the RSS/BJP, their popular agenda and the future of the so-called Secular State. The dangerous consequences of this revivalist movement have not been appreciated fully.

Rating:
Summary: A good source book on the subject.
Review: The author clearly makes a valiant effort at understanding the country. While he impresses with the scope of literature survey on the issue, Cohen fails to produce a thesis of any remark, or even coherence, from that wide reading. A great book if (1) you want to use it as a source book or (2)want to know what stereotypes have plagued America's understanding of India, for the author regurgitates a lot of such stereotypes. The book makes notable departures from mediocrity, as when it discusses Nehruvian antecedents to Indias present policy, but is on the whole uninspired. If the book is any barometer of USA's views on India, the future of the US-India alliance is not very bright.

Rating:
Summary: A useful, albeit optimistic, study of India's role
Review: The reviews up so far don't sound as if they are responding to the academic and policy value of Cohen's book. India: Emerging Power is an elegantly written, wide-ranging study of India's regional and global role. While (perhaps) a little overoptimistic about India's likely future success, Cohen assesses Indian diplomacy past, current strengths and weaknesses, and the way in which the US ought to engage India. Overall, Cohen comes out in favour of a closer US engagement with India - for positive reasons. The only drawback is that a second edition, post 9/11 and the 2002 Indo-Pak crisis, is needed - for much has changed, and India is close to achieving the regional dominance it demands. I highly recommend this book.