Global Common India Has To Manage: Ram Madhav At Indian Ocean Conference

The Indian Ocean region, home to 36 nations, is slowly becoming a volatile region -- a far cry from its earlier reputation of an "Ocean of peace" To maintain calm in the region, the 9th Indian Ocean Conference was held in Mauritius over the weekend.

"At the Indian Ocean Conference, we try to draw the attention of all the member countries in the region towards this emerging situation and the need for countries in the region to come together to manage this region," Ram Madhav, a key member of the BJP's ideological mentor Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, told NDTV. 

"What unfortunately happens mostly is there are certain big powers in the world which want to play the role of managers of all the global commons," added Madhav, who is also the chief of Delhi-based think tank India Foundation, one of the organisers of the conference and works closely with the government. 

Asked if the inordinate influence of the US should be balanced with that of India, Ram Madhav said India obviously has to play a proactive role. 

"That's why India has put together this conference, bringing foreign ministers of all the Indian Ocean countries together to deliberate on how we manage our region, how we manage our ocean, which once we used to be used to pride over its peaceful nature and when it is becoming volatile, how we manage it," he added. 

The Indian Ocean is of course a "global common", but the stakes are much higher for the regional countries here, he said. Not many people realize the importance of the Indian Ocean region, he said. 

"We think that the European Union is a big region, but the Indian Ocean is home to 36 countries. It is 40 per cent of the bulk container cargo that passes through this region and 70 per cent of energy trade passes through this region," he said.  

"World's three of the five largest economies are situated in this region. Three of the largest militaries are also incidentally situated in the region and India happens to be at the epicenter of this region," he added.