Bharat: Jai ho! India goes ‘Bharat’ at UN | India News

WASHINGTON: From an opening greeting of “Namaste from Bharat” to a closing reference to “India that is Bharat,” New Delhi (Nayi Dilli/Indraprastha?) went civilisational at the United Nations on Tuesday.
Not that the name India was forsaken. There were more than dozen references to India in external affairs minister S. Jaishankar’s speech at the UN General Assembly, including “there is much that India has to share” and “India’s initiatives.”

But there was an unmistakable sanskritic — and universal — flavor in the remarks, including invocation of India’s evolution as a Vishwa Mitra (a friend to the world) from the era of non-alignment, and its entering of “Amrit Kaal, a quarter century where greater progress and transformation awaits us.”
Jaishankar‘s short but expansive speech also invoked India’s global aspirations and obligations, while avoiding all references to Pakistan and China, its customary bugaboos.

“Our vision of ‘One Earth, One Family, One Future’ sought to focus on the key concerns of the many, not just the narrow interests of a few….. The international order is diverse and we must cater for divergences, if not differences. The days when a few nations set the agenda and expected others to fall in line are over, ” Jaishankar said.
“I speak for a society where ancient traditions of democracy have struck deep modern roots. As a result, our thinking, approaches and actions are now more grounded and authentic. As a civilizational polity that embraces modernity, we bring both tradition and technology equally confidently to the table. It is this fusion that today defines India, that is Bharat,” he concluded.