Advisory - Ten reasons why India will not and must not become a superpower

OTTAWA, April 6 /CNW Telbec/ - Some observers suggest that the recent surge in India's economic growth and the success of Indian unity and democracy signal the country's imminent emergence as a global superpower. Renowned Indian historian and biographer Ramachandra Guha, however, cautions that this talk of Indian superstardom is premature. He will be at Canada's International Development Research Centre (IDRC) in Ottawa April 8 to explore India's future on the world stage, analyzing the deep fault-lines within Indian society, politics, economics, and culture.

    
    When:  Thursday, April 8, 5:00 p.m. to 6:30 p.m.
    Where: IDRC, 150 Kent Street (Corner of Albert), 8th floor
    

Award-winning writer, historian and biographer Ramachandra Guha has taught at Yale and Stanford, held the Arné Naess Chair at the University of Oslo, and was the Indo-American Community Chair Visiting Professor at the University of California at Berkeley. Nominated in 2008 by Prospect and Foreign Policy magazines as one of the world's 100 most influential intellectuals, he also received the Padma Bhushan award, India's third highest civilian honour. The New York Times has referred to him as 'perhaps the best among India's non fiction writers'; Time Magazine has called him 'Indian democracy's preeminent chronicler'.

Mr Guha's lecture is the third in the Speakers of Renown series, which will be held throughout 2010 to mark IDRC's 40th anniversary. Upcoming headliners include are South Africa's Trevor Manuel, who went from anti-apartheid activist to one of the forces that made that country's economy one of the most robust in Africa; Chile's former President Ricardo Lagos, whose research was supported by IDRC at a time when intellectuals were being targeted by the Pinochet dictatorship; and Rima Khalaf Hunaidi, one of the leading voices on development in the Arab world.

The event is open to the media. French and English simultaneous interpretation is available. Spaces are limited and journalists are encouraged to register by calling Isabelle Bourgeault-Tassé at 613-696-2343 or e-mailing at [email protected].

For more information and the live webcast, visit www.idrc.ca/events-guha.

About IDRC

Canada's International Development Research Centre (IDRC) is one of the world's leading institutions in the generation and application of new knowledge to meet the challenges of international development. For 40 years, IDRC has worked in close collaboration with researchers from the developing world to build healthier, more equitable, and more prosperous societies.

For further information: Isabelle Bourgeault-Tassé, Senior Media Advisor, IDRC, [phone], [email protected]