Indian Foreign Policy:An Empirical Study

Foreign policy of a nation, also called foreign relations or foreign affairs policy, consists of self-interest strategies chosen by the country to safeguard its national interests and to achieve its goals within international relations setting. India has evolved from a protest voice on the world stage to an active shaper of the international order. India's evolving strategic outlook has made it possible. India slowly opened its economy through careful economic liberalization, and at the same time began to engage with the rest of a world on a different set of norms. By the late 1990's India was willing to place its own national interest - both economic and security-ahead of broader ideas of global justice and equity. This Paper gives a brief overview of how India has evolved its Foreign Policy over the years. It also tries to identify what needs to be done in the coming years to realize India as a Super Power. In order to get actionable pointers on this crucial aspect, an empirical study was conducted. Major stake holders of the economy such as Armed Forces personnel, Bureaucrats, Academicians, Researchers and Students from Pan India were contacted and were asked to answer the questions pertaining to various aspects of foreign policy. The data thus obtained was further analysed and conclusions were drawn on the basis of that. Foreign Policy should be Holistic, Realistic, Interest and Goal based and should be ambitious enough to achieve long-term objectives.