On May 13-14, 2015, the fourth scientific conference organized by the Center for Indian Studies of the Institute of Oriental Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences was held within the framework of the research project "India: Prospects Modern Development". The theme of the conference is "The New Coming of the BJP: a Year in power".

The results of the first year of work of the new Government of India were discussed. On April 7 - May 12, 2014, India held its sixteenth election to the Lok Sabha, the People's House of Parliament. They brought a crushing defeat to the previously ruling United Progressive Alliance, whose main force was the Indian National Congress, and a triumphant victory for the Indian People's Party (BJP), which leads the National Democratic Alliance. BJP leader Narendra Modi became Prime Minister of India.

Despite the fact that all the participants of the conference emphasized in their reports that one year is not enough time to talk about the success or failure of the winning party in the field of governing the country, nevertheless, it is possible to draw some conclusions about the main directions of development of the country outlined by the new government, and to consider the prospects

The first day of the conference was devoted to discussing the internal socio-economic and political development of India. After a brief introduction by the head of the Research Institute and project coordinator T. P. Shaumyan , E. A. Bragina (IMEMO RAS) made a presentation on "India: Attempts at economic reconstruction". She reviewed the main principles of India's economic policy, which is being developed and implemented by the new government, evaluated the industrial development and business environment improvement programs proposed by N. Modi, and analyzed the main factors that set the direction of economic reforms.

S. N. Kamenev (Institute of Economics of the Russian Academy of Sciences) continued the topic of economic development in his report "The Indian Economy: a Year after the Elections". He noted that in terms of economic growth, India has again achieved good results this year, ranking second in the world after China. However, there are still a number of important issues waiting to be resolved. Despite impressive numerical indicators, economic growth is achieved primarily at the expense of service industries, while the real sector of the economy-industry and agriculture-shows modest results. Against this background, the change in the methodology for calculating the main economic indicators seems more likely to be a political move, which made it possible to show positive dynamics to voters, but in practice it is too early to talk about serious success.

An interesting continuation of the given topic was the speeches of Y. O. Sadovnikova (IMEMO) and T. O. Svinarchuk (IV RAS). Ya. O. Sadovnikova's report "Initiatives of the BJP Government in the field of socio-economic design" examines a landmark event for India - the abolition of the Planning Commission, which had been working since 1950, and the creation of a new body, NITI Aayog, or "policy commission", as an alternative. The paper compares the role and functions of the Planning Commission in the process of economic development of India and possible directions of work of the new structure designed to promote "cooperative federalism" in relations between the center and the states.

T. O. Svinarchuk in her report "The problem of water resources use in the policy of the Modi Government: internal and external aspects", using the example of the hydropower industry, examined the main problems that India faces in the development of industry and infrastructure sectors, and the actions that the new government is taking to solve them.

On the first day of the conference, a number of reports were delivered on the social challenges and political issues that the Government of India is facing-

In his report "Narendra Modi: in Thrall to the middle class", A. A. Kutsenko analyzed the role of various social strata in the victory of the BJP, the reasons for the crushing defeat of the Indian National Congress in the elections. Despite the efforts of his opponents and critics, Modi managed to present a program and create an image of a politician who can ensure the interests of the middle class, effectively manage the country, fight corruption, improve living standards, and create a strong government.

In her report "The Government of India's Policy towards Minorities and Dalits", E. S. Yurlova (IB RAS) noted that after the elections, one of the main tasks of the BJP is to attract wider segments of the population, including religious minorities (Muslims, Christians, Dalits and representatives of other castes from backward classes). This goal can be achieved with the help of socio-economic programs of the Government aimed at improving the situation of these social groups. Previous BJP governments did not always succeed, but time will tell whether they will succeed now.

The fate and prospects of one of the political opponents of the ruling party, the Aam Aadmi Party, or Common Man's Party, which won the recent regional elections to the legislative Assembly of the National Capital Territory (Delhi), were considered by V. P. Kashin (IV RAS) in the report " Common Man's Party: an Alternative to the BJP and INC." A new party in India's political arena is positioning itself as an alternative force to both the ruling BJP and the loser Inc. Nevertheless, despite the broad support of the party's electoral program by the voters, the leadership of the AAP and its leader A. Kejriwal have yet to prove their worth as a politician and as a manager in the real conditions of the region. To the speaker, the probability of success of the new party in this area seems rather doubtful.

One of the most acute problems of India, the issue of Kashmir, was highlighted in the report "Events around and inside Kashmir: a year later" by R. K. Pribylsky (MSU). The speaker spoke about the situation inside the state of Jammu and Kashmir, about N. Modi's visit there, about the prospects of abolishing the special status that this territory has under the Constitution of India, and about the further development of the state.

Reports of the second day of the conference were devoted to the analysis of India's foreign policy under the new government. F. N. Yurlov (Institute of Foreign Policy of the Russian Academy of Sciences) reported on the main directions of the emerging foreign policy course of the Modi government. In his report "Problems in shaping the foreign policy of the Modi Government", he noted among the main priorities the expansion of ties with India's closest neighbors in the South Asian region, the development of relations with other Asian countries, in particular with Japan and with the largest player in the region of China. mutually beneficial and constructive relations with the United States.

In her report "New Faces in Indian Foreign Policy", N. T. Shaumyan (Institute of Foreign Policy of the Russian Academy of Sciences) presented a political portrait of the members of Modi's team, who, along with the Prime Minister, are key figures in shaping the country's foreign policy. Among them are the first female Foreign Minister since Indira Gandhi, Sushma Swaraj; Subramaniam Jaishankar, who became First Deputy Foreign Minister at the end of January 2015, an experienced diplomat who worked in Moscow, Washington and Beijing; one of the "shadow" participants in the process of developing and implementing foreign policy decisions, quickly gaining weight and influence in the BJP, the former official representative of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh Ram Madhav, whom the Indian press calls Narendra Modi's ambassador-at-large. The new Indian Prime Minister's active actions in the international arena and their possible results were discussed in the report of Sandeep Kumar (Sandeep Kumar University). Jawaharlal Nehru, New Delhi).

B. Lebedeva (IB RAS) in her report "Indian Ocean: New aspects of Modi's course" focused on the main reasons for the activation of the new government's course in the Indian Ocean zone in the light of the strengthening of China's presence in the region, including in the context of the launch of a large-scale project "Maritime Silk Road". The measures taken by the BJP Government to improve the quality of life were analyzed.

strengthening India's position in relations with island and coastal States, and providing forecasts for the development of the situation. Two speakers paid attention to the important issue of India's international relations in the field of developing cooperation in the field of peaceful nuclear energy. S. L. Rabey (Institute of Nuclear Physics of the Russian Academy of Sciences) presented the report "Nuclear Diplomacy of Narendra Modi", in which he stressed that the nuclear sphere occupies a significant place among the areas of diplomacy of the new Prime Minister. India seeks to take a full-fledged position in the international nuclear community. The huge efforts of M. Singh's cabinet led to the withdrawal of India from international sanctions, and the new government does not intend to abandon long-term plans for the development of nuclear energy and is taking active steps in this direction, including by signing a number of contracts with foreign countries for the construction of nuclear power plants in India.

Likhachev A. K. (St. Petersburg.GU) in the report "The Nuclear Energy Factor in India's relations with the United States and Russia" identified the main competitive advantages of both countries in the struggle for the Indian nuclear energy market and possible external factors that may influence the choice of the Indian side in developing cooperation with them. A comprehensive analysis of India's relations with one of its key Asian partners was presented in the report of A. A. Kireeva (MGI (U)Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation) "India and Japan: a new impulse after the BDI came to power". The new government's initiatives in developing relations with Japan, as well as the convergence of their strategic interests in Asia, contribute to and are likely to contribute to fruitful cooperation between the two countries in the future.

When considering India's foreign policy, it is impossible to ignore such a crucial issue as its relations with the region's largest neighbor, Pakistan. As N. A. Zamaraeva (Institute of Internal Affairs of the Russian Academy of Sciences) emphasized in the report "A view from Islamabad on the Pakistani vector of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's foreign policy", the change in the Pakistani vector of India's foreign policy in 2014-2015 is the result of several components. They are connected both with the position of the new government of India, the activation of its foreign policy activities in South Asia, and with the change in the overall geopolitical situation due to the withdrawal of the international coalition troops from Afghanistan.

Relations with South Asian countries are also discussed in the report of Slonskaya (MGIMO University of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation) "Indian Neighborhood Policy as a priority area of foreign policy activities of the Modi Government". The author investigated the results of the new Prime Minister's active actions in this area within the framework of the neighborhood first policy, which consists in building closer and friendly relations with the countries of the region: Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan, Sri Lanka, and the Maldives. According to MS Slonskaya, while recognizing certain achievements in this field, we should not overestimate them, as a number of serious problems that hinder the expansion of cooperation between the countries of the region are still waiting to be resolved.

In general, the speakers agreed with the thesis of F. N. Yurlov - the main features of the foreign policy of the current Indian leadership have not yet been fully expressed and its further development depends on the dynamics of international relations both in Asia and at the global level. Based on the results of the conference, a collection of articles is planned to be published.

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