ET Now Global Business Summit 2026: 'India does not ask if it can rise, India declares it,' says Times Group MD Vineet Jain

New Delhi: Welcoming Prime Minister Narendra Modi to the summit, Vineet Jain, MD, Times Group, said India stands at the centre of global realignment.

He cited trade deals, infrastructure expansion, digital scale and reform-driven execution as drivers of its rise.

"A decade ago, this platform was about exchanging ideas. Today, it is a platform which is helping us navigate a world being reshaped economically, technologically and geopolitically," Jain said, noting that the theme of the 10th edition is 'A decade of disruption, a century of realignment', and at the centre of that realignment stands India. "India does not ask whether it can rise," Jain said. "India declares to the world that it is rising."


Under the PM's leadership, he said, "India has transitioned from a land of aspirations to a nation of achievements. We have witnessed a potential being realised and a performance reaching new heights".

Highlighting India's diplomatic acumen during unprecedented geopolitical tumult, Jain said the country has concluded "five transformative trade agreements within a single year" with the US, the EU, the UK, New Zealand and Oman, positioning India as "a bridge builder in a fractured world".

He also pointed out that the EU free trade agreement represents "approximately 25% of global GDP", while the US partnership secures preferential access to "a $30-trillion market".