Article 1: A bigger BRICS, shaped by India’s vision
Why in news: The BRICS Summit is being held in New Delhi on September 12–13, 2026, amid geopolitical instability, expanding membership, rising economic weight, and technological competition involving AI and quantum computing.
Key Details
- India’s BRICS Agenda: India has prioritised “Building Resilience, Innovation, Cooperation and Sustainability”, seeking to refocus BRICS towards practical, development-oriented cooperation.
- Building Resilience: Initiatives include a Digital Centre of Excellence for Smart Grids and Energy Storage, Logistics Supply Chain Cooperation Framework, and centres for agro-ecology and regenerative agriculture.
- Promoting Innovation: India has proposed a start-up innovation fund, incubator network, Digital Public Infrastructure repository, science and research repository, and cooperation on mega science projects.
- Strengthening Cooperation: Focus areas include multilateral trade, mental wellness, urbanisation, women’s digital capacity, education, youth skilling and MSME cooperation, delivering people-centric benefits.
- Sustainability & Multipolarity: BRICS is advancing disaster management, forest-fire preparedness, sustainable aviation fuels and climate-resilient adaptation, while strengthening members’ strategic autonomy and promoting a multipolar world.
BRICS Summit: Strategic Importance
- The New Delhi BRICS Summit (September 12–13, 2026) is taking place amid wars, geopolitical instability, weakening global governance and changing international alliances.
- BRICS has expanded to 11 members and around 10 partner countries, with its combined economic output in PPP terms exceeding that of the G7.
- The growing strategic competition over Artificial Intelligence and quantum computing further increases the importance of the grouping.
India’s BRICS Presidency
- India has made extensive preparations, conducting around 350 meetings across the country, including 22 at the ministerial level.
- Its theme of “Building Resilience, Innovation, Cooperation and Sustainability” seeks to give a renewed direction to the BRICS agenda.
- India’s focus is particularly on economic cooperation and people-to-people development, alongside political and security issues.
Resilience and Innovation
- BRICS has launched initiatives such as the Digital Centre of Excellence for Smart Grids and Energy Storage and the Logistics Supply Chain Cooperation Framework.
- Centres of Excellence on Agro-Ecology and Regenerative Agriculture aim to strengthen long-term resilience.
- India has proposed a start-up innovation fund, incubator network, digital public infrastructure repository and scientific research repository to promote innovation.
Cooperation and Sustainability
- Cooperation is being expanded into multilateral trade, mental wellness, urbanisation, women’s digital empowerment, education, youth skilling and MSMEs.
- Sustainability initiatives include combating desertification, disaster management, forest-fire preparedness and sustainable aviation fuels.
- Community-based climate adaptation is emphasised to make climate action more people-centric, rather than focusing only on mitigation.
BRICS and a Multipolar World
- India seeks to make BRICS a platform for knowledge sharing, joint research, capacity building and practical cooperation.
- The grouping can strengthen members’ strategic autonomy and contribute to a multipolar international order.
- BRICS should avoid being drawn into geopolitical conflicts and instead focus on collective interests and concrete outcomes at the Delhi Summit.
Conclusion
The Delhi Summit provides India an opportunity to strengthen BRICS as a practical, inclusive and people-centric platform rather than merely a geopolitical grouping. By prioritising resilience, innovation, cooperation and sustainability, India can deepen development partnerships and strategic autonomy. BRICS must, however, avoid divisive geopolitical currents and focus on concrete cooperation that advances a genuinely multipolar global order.