How do you get a $13 trillion economy interested in a $1 trillion economy? Of the thousands of ways, the $20 million Incredible India@60 campaign seems one. “We are looking at creating a presence, a space for India,” said Nandan Nilekani, co-chairman, Infosys Technologies. “This is a major initiative. We intend to leave a very strong impression of India,” said Sunil Mittal, president, CII and chairman and group CEO, Bharti Enterprises.In a public private partnership of sorts between CII and Ministry of Tourism, India@60 is an event that will unfold here on Monday. In addition, there are eight other ministries and eight overseas partners including universities of Columbia and Yale, NYSE and Business Roundtable. A short walk on Times Square or a drive through the signboard city throws up advertising banners on sidewalks and buses. “The idea is to have four days of high impact on business, diplomacy and culture,” said Nilekani. “The event will have the creamy layer of US companies,” said Mittal. These include Indra Nooyi, chairperson and CEO, Pepsi; Charles Kaye, co-president, Warburg Pincus; John Chambers, chairman and CEO, Cisco Systems; and L Brooks Entwistle, MD and CEO, Goldman Sachs (India). Apart from a strong corporate presence, India@60 will see Singapore foreign minister George Yeo; Brazilian foreign minister Celso Amorin; and Ernesto Zedillo, former president of Mexico. “This country works on signals,” said Mittal. “Signals generate momentum here. And this event will generate positive signaling.” What’s being sold here are essentially three Ds, democracy, diversity, demographics. Well, so what’s new?Growth and success stories. “Early success stories have started coming out of India. Once these stories come out, more investments will follow,” said Mittal. Underlying all these is the “depth of entrepreneurs,” said Nilekani. And binding them together are investments in infrastructure. Put it all together and the same three Ds of five years ago become stronger.The city’s attention is towards the visit of Iranian president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, who arrives on Sunday. Citizens here are outraged that Ahmadinejad wanted to lay a wreath at Ground Zero, the permission for which has been denied. And while he has a speaking assignment at Columbia University on Monday, the university is under pressure to stop that. Much of the media attention here is focused on this uproar.With sessions like “Investing in India” and “India’s social building blocks” and with speakers like Pranab Mukherjee, Vayalar Ravi, and Sam Pitroda talking, the sessions hold much promise. Just how many of these get delivered as the India juggernaut moves into the US financial capital tomorrow, remains to be seen. The writer is a part of the media group invited to the US by the Confederation of Indian Industry .
