External Affairs Minister Jaishankar on Saturday said the standing of India had global recognition now unlike in the earlier decades and attributed this to the strong leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
“When I first went abroad about 40 years ago, this was not how India and its leaders were regarded. But now the standing, culture and heritage of India have a global recognition,” the Minister said while addressing students of Jain University, near here.
He gave the example of yoga being celebrated globally and ayurveda being spread across while understanding of Indian culture and related things increasing at the global level.
“This world is very connected. Because of being connected, it gives you more opportunities and benefits. But it also gives you more problems. You need a very clear and strong leadership... which today has the thinking, clarity, and confidence to deal with such problems,” he said.
Underscoring the importance of an effective foreign policy, he said one of the aims of the foreign policy was to ensure that Indian people are looked after wherever they were. The country had demonstrated it by bringing back 70 lakh people from across the world during COVID-19 while about 20,000 Indian students struck in Ukraine too had been brought back. “It requires a strong leader who can do whatever it takes to look after its people. That is really a big change that we have seen in the last eight years,” Mr. Jaishankar said.
Karnataka Higher Education Minister C.N. Ashwath Narayan was also present on the occasion.
