BRICS! A heterogenous multilateral forum with diverse ambitions. Yet it converges with one concrete goal. To represent an alternative world view, beyond the western prism. The forum is thus not anti-western, but aims to champion aspirations of the Global South and advocate the perspectives of the emerging economies in a geopolitical latitude, which was hitherto dominated by the G7 & other historically elite economies.
As the BRICS chair for 2026, New Delhi indeed operates with this solid vision, beyond infinite strategic distortions & competing interests. India intends to articulate responsible statecraft & reorient divergent discourses into a concrete channel with human-centric approach for the welfare of Global South & beyond.
The expanding representation and increasing inclination of the Asian & African economies to seek membership of the BRICS, reflects the platform’s growing relevance in the 21st century world order, which is undergoing once-in-a-century transformation. Today, 11 emerging economies and growing markets form the BRICS, who encompass 50 per cent of global population & more than 40 per cent of global GDP, thus making it more significant than ever, to address the aspirations of the world & counter-weight the challenges.
India’s BRICS Chair amid a distorted geopolitical geometry
India has assumed the chair of this bulwark multilateral forum at a very precarious geopolitical juncture, which is earmarked with hard-nosed contests from Asia to Europe, trade & tariff tussles, spiking transactionalism & protectionism and in an era where supply chain, maritime chokepoints, technology & Artificial Intelligence is weaponised to seek disproportionate hegemonic primacy. Not to mention, escalating climate catastrophes, melting Arctic corridors & energy conundrums are further pressurising the hitherto fragmented geopolitical mosaic & is indeed unboxing new frontiers of great power competition.
Weave distortions, accommodate aspirations & accelerate valued partnerships
Thus, India aspires to bridge the diversities and weave the distortions. It aims to reorient the fragmented geopolitical geometry for the welfare of the Global South and entire humanity. As the chair of a forum that represents half of the global population, India intends to instrumentalise the multilateral platform as a tool for responsible statecraft & human welfare beyond seeking competitive edge & hegemonic primacy for narrow deeds. India aims to heed to diverse views, perspectives and genuine ambitions of the member-states and forge value-based partnerships for the well-being of the people.
India aims to balance the divergent goals, forge a convergent point, sail through the fragile world order and lead the geopolitical path ahead, with strategic clarity, minimised contests & insulating humanity from aggressive actions. India leads the strategic propositions of the BRICS by harnessing a common ground for the benefit of the Global South among competing claims of the vast network of geopolitical players.
The path is challenging. But, India leads it with other member-states underlined with utmost strategic maturity, prudence and salience.
India picturised BRICS as people-centric forum for Global South
Assuming the BRICS chairmanship for 2026, India envisioned to reframe, reform & attest new meaning to the multilateral forum. India redefined the core principles of the BRICS, thus aligned it with the compelling demands of the present-day. India, under its leadership, thus fuelled new momentum to BRICS to sail through the steep geopolitical faultlines. New Delhi picturised BRICS as a people-centric forum, because beyond infinite geopolitical upheavals and competing claims, every member-state strives for the benefit of its people. And that’s the whole purpose and sole agenda that acts as a catalyst to unite nations under an umbrella platform, despite steep differences.
Under its leadership, India heralded a new acronym for BRICS instead of Brazil, Russia, India, China & South Africa. India’s BRICS resonated “Building Resilience & Innovation for Cooperation and Sustainability”. This definition summarises India’s BRICS presidency. New Delhi aims to work with the “humanity first” approach and forge an inclusive sustainable partnership coupled with a cooperative framework, by placing Global South growth at the forefront.
India’s pillars for BRICS
Building Resilience
As the BRICS leader, India aims to articulate economic, social and institutional resilience amid massive geopolitical upheavals. India aims to build multilateral resilience to navigate supply chain disruptions, trade wars, market weaponisation and other challenges. India also aims to build global resilience against health risks such as pandemic and wildering climate crisis.
Powering Innovation
Another key pillar of India’s BRICS strategy is to power innovation by sealing high-value partnership and pooling resources, technical expertise and manpower. India aims to gain strategic edge in emerging & frontier technology for human welfare, by dismantling weaponisation of the tech for narrow hegemonic deeds. India aims to lead the revolution in Digital Public Infrastructure(DPI), fintech & human-centric AI growth,so that the world is future-ready to embrace an era whose bedrock forms cutting-edge technology. In this direction, India has set an outstanding testament by revolutionising UPI & other indigenous tech at a global scale.
Deeping multilateral cooperation
Through the BRICS chairmanship, India aspires to deepen multilateral cooperation for global welfare, beyond competing views. Weaving cooperation to ensure smooth & friction-less supply chain, trade facilitation and to forge value-oriented partnerships across the spectrum for human welfare.
Fortifying a sustainable world
In an era of steep climate crisis and when the world strives for a sustainable way ahead, India as the BRICS chair fortifies sustainability as a key pillar of its BRICS strategy. India has always advocated sustainability as a mantra to shield the earth against climate catastrophes in G20, UN and other forums, with its “Panchamrita”, vocal for green energy, solar coalition and other pathways. Similarly, in BRICS as well, India prioritises transition to clean energy, healthy lifestyle and climate action.
Originally having Brazil, Russia, India & China, the forum aimed to present the world-view of the emerging Asian economies, beyond the G7. Later South Africa was clubbed in 2010, thus reforming as BRICS. However, nations across the world, especially from the Global South illustrated their increasing aspiration to join the club. Thus, in 2024, Egypt, Ethiopia, UAE & Iran joined and Indonesia in 2025.
With enhanced representation of the globe, BRICS and its original agenda of Asian economic integration, hence is more relevant than ever, in a world being defined by economic coercion. However, challenges persist. Bigger the economic & political representation, higher the challenges & divergent aspirations, thus greater the intensity of difficulty to find a converging proposition. Yet, New Delhi reconceptualises the BRICS essence with a people-centric approach, realigns the BRICS arc beyond fractures, choreographs economic coherence with conviction & seals a sustainable strategic texture beyond geopolitical swings of the great power playbook!
