Australian media still see India through a colonial lens, focussing on divisions and poverty. They miss the big story of modern India.

India is the fastest growing major economy in the world, and it is changing the landscape of our thinking on global security, trade. political engagement and investment. When India gained independence from Britain, it had been left as one of the poorest nations on earth. As recently as the early 1990s, cities like London or Paris had larger economies than India. Today its economy is larger than the economies of France or Britain.

Size Matters

In 2014 the Indian economy was ranked 10th in the world – today it is ranked 4th. In less than ten years it overtook major economies such as Canada, Russia, Italy, France and Britain. It will soon be number three in the world. And, in the last ten years, it lifted 150 million out of poverty.

Last year, India became the largest population in the world, overtaking China. What is often called the “demographic dividend” has a lot to yet pay out – more than 50% of India’s population is below the age of 25 years. More than 65% is below the age of 35.

Mega Projects

To benefit from this demographic, India is spending large on infrastructure which underpins economic growth. It is the fastest growing real estate market in the world. It is currently spending more on infrastructure than the entire economy of South Korea. It is home to more “mega projects” than any other country – impacting new cities, coastal resources, highway connections and many more.

Industrialisation is happening at pace, with logistics easier and cost falling rapidly. Big countries across the world are now producing in India – overtaking the USA as the second most attractive manufacturing destination after China. The combination of largest low cost workforce, large domestic market and government subsidies makes it a strong manufacturing option. Samsung, Microsoft, Apple, Amazon, Mercedes Benz are just a few of the companies in India now. All of this means modern India is also the fastest growing major stock market in the world.

Leading with Tech

Science and technology have been a big part of this growth, with India now ranked third among attractive destinations. It is the world’s biggest provider of IT services and the third largest provider of software. India now has the world’s fastest growing startup eco-system, rivalling Silicon Valley. In 2014 India had 400 startups – today it has more than 90,000.

In space, India is among the top five, and home to the India Space Research Organisation (ISRO), one of the world’s top space agencies, with a successful moon landing in recent times. ISRO launched over 400 satellites for 348 different countries and over 150 Indian-origin in the last 12 months. India is one of only four countries in the world to develop anti-satellite weaponry, and is capable of destroying the communications of any country by taking out their satellites.

A True Superpower

When you think about “superpowers”, we generally think of the USA, China and the European Union. But modern India is moving very fast to join them as the fourth superpower. Spending on the military is growing rapidly and is now US$84 billion – ranked four in the world. It has over 1.4 million active military personnel, 1.1 million reserves and over 2.5 million paramilitary. This makes it the world’s largest army in terms of personnel. It is also a nuclear country with some of the most powerful nuclear weapons. It is the biggest importer of military arms in the world – and one of the largest arms producers. It exports military equipment to over 145 countries.

In summary, the fastest growing major economy, the fastest growing major stock market, fastest growing startups eco-system, military strength, fastest growing real estate market and fastest growing educated population – India is striding towards being a major superpower.

This is some kind of miracle, making this the century of India. If we look at it this way, we have a chance to engage deeply with India across education, research, business, government, defence and via our growing Indian diaspora here.

  Chris Mooney - AICC Executive Chairman