Wowed By Young India

The summer heat in India uncorks a slew of delegations annually on unsuspecting audiences around the world,often without a purpose or goal. Indian Embassies in host countries scramble to get them appointments with"important" officials, sheepishly trying to varnish the real reason for the visit -- it is just too damnhot in Delhi and even worse in home constituencies.

But last week Washington played host to a different kind of guest from Indian officialdom -- the smart set.Seven young members of parliament for whom the United States is not a land of angry aliens but a country theywant to do business with. (Five of the seven have been to US universities and gained a wholesome familiaritywhich the Cold War generation can never gather.)

So in walked the "young political sons" -- Sachin Pilot, Milind Deora, Jitin Prasada (all CongressParty), and Manvendra Singh (BJP) followed by one-of-a-kind Vijay Mallya (Janata Party) and the everpersonable Rajiv Shukla of the Congress. It was Shukla who conceived the idea of the Indo-US ParliamentaryForum to create a counterpart to the India Caucus in the US House of Representatives.

And a wise idea too -- to develop bonds between politicians instead of leaving all the heavy lifting offoreign policy to the two bureaucracies and their cautious, watch-your-back methods. Political inputs cansometimes provide the impetus to cut through the cobwebs nurtured by professional diplomats.

The delegation was led by B.J. Panda, the savvy businessman-turned-politician of the Biju Janata Dal, whoseconcise, frank and focused presentations at meeting after meeting were a refreshing change from the giantsleeping pill one normally gets -- stream-of-consciousness discourses that have no beginning, no end buts lotsof middle. But this was no rambling-heavily accented-translation needing-Hinglish talk that audiences strainto understand.

Americans quickly seized the USP of this rare delegation, giving them every appointment they sought andthen some. In fact, the organizers from FICCI had put in calls for meetings with six or seven senatorsthinking may be two or three will come through as is the norm. But most senators gave them time and the youngMPs were in the unique situation of having to respectfully decline some.

Whether it was the White House, Capitol Hill or the opinion-shaping think tanks, the group covered a swatheof Washington normally off limits to random visitors descending at summer time. They met Senator Richard Lugar,chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, a Republican who still tries to think seriously aboutworld affairs in a party dominated by neo-cons, and Henry Hyde, his House counterpart.

In the State Department they met Deputy Secretary Richard Armitage and in the White House, AmbassadorRobert Blackwill, who might well be the next national security adviser if there is a Bush II. Intwo-and-a-half-days, the group had met the editorial board of The Washington Post, given presentationsat three think tanks and a business council, lunched with nine Congressmen of the India Caucus and gone to thePentagon.

Paul Wolfowitz, Pentagon’s No 2 dropped into their meeting with his chief deputy Douglas Feith, and wasso engrossed, he ran much over time. Starting with breakfast, the group extracted the maximum out of the day,even finding time to unwind one evening at the legendary "Blues Alley" and listen to some good music.

The American establishment obviously took the delegation seriously and listened carefully to their pitchwhile ensuring the new generation of leaders stays invested in the relationship. US concerns -- outsourcing,the recent change of government in India, continuity in Indian reforms -- were addressed with confidence andmaturity. Even difficult questions about the need for reservations in the private sector were handled withaplomb.

Sachin Pilot spoke with compassion about how those left behind need to be "given a foothold" by thecurrent system. There were some Mallya moments too -- like when the liquor baron, who is so used to beingflanked by beautiful starlets, blurted that reservations in the private sector would prevent him from hiring"good looking" air hostesses. No Sir, Kingfisher Airlines will not have reserve jobs for the downtrodden.

The young stars were visibly impressed with the power treatment they received and the good vibes they felt.They were surprised to see how "boned up" Lugar was on the importance of Indo-US relations. There were noprescriptions, no lectures, no big brother talk but a mature exposition of bilateral relations which by allaccounts have reached a level of understanding unimaginable just a few short years ago.

The American leadership went out of its way to talk about the importance of the partnership and the wayahead. Lugar told them that of the ten most important initiatives in the world, he considers the Indianconfidence-building measures with Pakistan to be among the top five. He has already advised the BushAdministration that they need to focus on supporting the CBMs in the future -- if Bush wins his re-election,that is.

Even in the three years that the Indo-US Parliamentary Forum has been in existence, a distinct change inattitude is noticeable. Panda remembers that Indo-US relations were "very Pakistan-centric" during hisfirst visit, with Pakistan making a front-door entry in every discussion. But this year the focus was vastlydifferent both by choice and circumstance. Shukla, in fact, said, "We want the focus of our visit to beIndia."

The visitors told the Americans they were the "face" of a changing India. The message: They have longyears ahead to help shape the country’s future. It seems the Americans got the message loud and clear.