By all standards, India's future looks bright. It has banished famine and cut absolute poverty by more than half. Its economic growth is among the fastest of any country. Figures published show annual GDP growth over the past three years has averaged 8.1%.

Its top technology colleges set global standards. India is producing far more world-class companies. Indian firms have two-thirds of the global market in offshore IT services and nearly half that in BPO. And now they are being joined by manufacturers who are spreading their wings.

Its huge potential market of 1.1 billion people, its wealth of English-speakers and democratic institutions has helped it secure a niche in the world economy that can only grow in importance.

The country is now seen as half of an “India-China” pairing that is transforming the global economy. This shift is not as extraordinary as it first seems. A historical perspective shows it to be the restoration of the old order. After all, China and India were the world's biggest economies until the mid-19th century. The question is no longer whether India can fly, but how high.