Politics in India since Independence unease in Indo-US relations during the 1950s. The US also resented India’s growing partnership with the Soviet Union. You have studied in the last chapter, the strategy of planned economic development adopted by India. This policy emphasised import-substitution.
The emphasis on developing a resource base also meant that export oriented growth was limited. This development strategy limited India’s economic interaction with the outside world. Afro-Asian unity Yet, given its size, location and power potential, Nehru envisaged a major role for India in world affairs and especially in Asian affairs. His era was marked by the establishment of contacts between India and other newly independent states in Asia and Africa.
Throughout the 1940s and 1950s, Nehru had been an ardent advocate of Asian unity. Under his leadership, India convened the Asian Relations Conference in March , five months ahead of attaining its independence. India made earnest efforts for the early realisation of freedom of Indonesia from the Dutch colonial regime by convening an international conference in to support its freedom struggle. India was a staunch supporter of the decolonisation process and firmly opposed racism, especially apartheid in South Africa.
The Afro- Asian conference held in the Indonesian city of Bandung in , commonly known as the Bandung Conference, marked the zenith of India’s engagement with the newly independent Asian and African nations. The Bandung Conference later led to the establishment of the NAM. The First Summit of the NAM was held in Belgrade in September . Nehru was a co-founder of the NAM.