The Unfinished Quest: India’s Search for Major Power Status from Nehru to Modi.

The Unfinished Quest: India’s Search for Global Power

📖 About the Book

The Unfinished Quest explores India's complex journey towards achieving greater regional and global influence. Written by leading international relations scholar T.V. Paul, this book examines India's rise, challenges and aspirations in the evolving world order.

In 2022, India surpassed the United Kingdom, its former colonial ruler, to become the fifth-largest economy in the world. For decades, global leaders have recognized India as an emerging major power, and most permanent members of the United Nations Security Council have acknowledged the need for India to have a greater role in global governance. Yet India continues to face challenges in achieving the status of a fully recognized great power.

In this comprehensive study, T.V. Paul traces India's path from independence in 1947 to the present day, analysing both its achievements and setbacks. The book explores the ambitions of Indian leaders, the strategies adopted to increase national power and the internal and external constraints that have shaped India's progress.

Using key indicators of global status and influence, Paul evaluates different phases of India's development and provides valuable insights into power competition and changing international relations.

The book also examines India's position in the Indo-Pacific region, particularly its relationship with China. It presents India as a potential "swing power" capable of balancing China's growing influence, depending on India's ability to strengthen both its hard power and soft power.

Through a detailed analysis of economics, diplomacy, democracy and demographics, The Unfinished Quest offers an authoritative account of India's continuing search for a larger role in global affairs.

✨ Key Highlights

• A detailed analysis of India's rise in the global political order.
• Explores India's successes and challenges since independence.
• Examines India's strategic position in the Indo-Pacific region.
• Provides insights into India-China competition and global power shifts.
• Discusses the role of democracy, economic growth and demographic advantage.
• An essential read for students of international relations and geopolitics.

✍️ About the Author

T. V. Paul is Distinguished James McGill Professor in the Department of Political Science at McGill University, Montreal, and a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada.

He served as the President of the International Studies Association (ISA) for 2016–17 and is the Founding Director of the Global Research Network on Peaceful Change (GRENPEC).

Paul is the author and editor of numerous books and academic articles in the fields of international relations, international security and South Asian studies. His works include Restraining Great Powers, The Warrior State: Pakistan in the Contemporary World, Globalization and the National Security State, The Tradition of Non-Use of Nuclear Weapons, and India in the World Order: Searching for Major-Power Status.

He is also the lead editor of The Oxford Handbook of Peaceful Change in International Relations and currently serves as the editor of the South Asia in World Affairs book series published by Georgetown University Press.

📚 Why Read This Book?

The Unfinished Quest is a significant exploration of India's ambitions, opportunities and challenges on the world stage. It provides readers with a deeper understanding of how India’s economic growth, strategic choices and democratic values will shape its future role as a global power.