The Security Of Prosperity: A Policeman’s Vantage On The Davos Agenda

As the world’s elite gather in the thin air of Davos, debating the “Spirit of Dialogue,” a veteran of India’s security frontiers sees the summit for what it truly is, not just a financial talk-shop, but a critical security council for our fractured age. 

After 34 years navigating the volatile terrain of the Indian Northeast, as Assam’s DGP and later as Chief Information Commissioner, I’ve witnessed a tectonic shift. We have moved from the ‘Kinetic Age’ of bullets and borders to the ‘Intelligent Age’ of bytes and narratives. For a Viksit Bharat, this isn’t a sidebar discussion. It is the main agenda. And from this new frontline, our message to global investors is clear, India’s hard-won peace is your ultimate infrastructure, and our next great battle is to shield our digital dawn.

Peace is the Foundation: From Weapon Corridor to Growth Gateway

For decades, headlines from India’s Northeast spoke only of conflict. The approach was ‘security-first’, often mistaking containment for strategy. Today, we have flipped that script. Through gritty, on-the-ground counter-insurgency operations that valued community stakes over brute force, strategic diplomacy, and the transformative ‘Act East’ policy, we have turned a frontier into a gateway. The guns in the hills are largely silent. What fills the air now is the sound of construction and the buzz of opportunity.

When Davos buzzes about ‘friend-shoring’ and resilient supply chains, they should look at Assam. The peace here isn’t an accident, it’s a deliverable. It is a ‘Security Dividend’ earned through a unique model of non-militarized counter-insurgency and intelligent engagement. This dividend is our strongest, most unshakeable pitch. We have brought the Northeast into the economic mainstream, not with hollow promises, but with a legacy of resilience. To the global investor, my pitch is, your capital here is secured by a proven track record of turning conflict zones into connective hubs.

Assam on the Global Stage: The Sarma Sprint

This transformation has a face and a force, Chief Minister Dr. Himanta Biswa Sarma. His maiden Davos visit isn’t a photo-op, it’s a powerful declaration. Under his leadership, Assam isn’t just open for business, it’s sprinting ahead. With a staggering 45% growth since 2020-21, we are India’s fastest-growing state.

Dr. Sarma is pitching Assam as a global powerhouse. He’s championing mega-projects like the Kaziranga Elevated Corridor and the pioneering Brahmaputra tunnel, signaling world-class ambition. He’s pivoting the state from its old hydrocarbon identity to a future built on high-tech manufacturing and green energy, leveraging the mighty Brahmaputra to create a power-surplus paradise. With land offered at highly competitive rates and a relentless focus on ease of business, Assam is actively inviting the world to join its $100 billion economic journey. This is a state led by a doer, not just a talker.

New Siren: Our Digital Siege

But just as we secured the physical landscape, a new siren wails in our servers. For India, Davos’s number one global risk, misinformation and disinformation, is a dagger aimed at our social fabric. A single coordinated bot-army can now trigger communal strife or market panic in minutes. Our critical infrastructure, from Assam’s oil rigs to the UPI payments empowering our street vendors, is in the crosshairs of our adversaries.

We cannot afford to continue to treat data breaches as white-collar crime. They are organized attacks on our sovereignty. As we digitalize at a blistering pace, our attack surface area also increases. India must lead the charge at forums like Davos for a global ‘Cyber-Norm’. Attacks on a nation’s civilian digital infrastructure must be treated with the same gravity as a physical invasion. Our internal security is now synonymous to digital integrity.

Building Smart Forces for Smart Cities

As we demand more smart cities, it needs ‘Smart Forces’ to guard them. During my tenure, we modernized the Assam Police not just with new weapons, but with new tools in forensic, UAVs, and data analytics. The modern police must be as savvy with blockchain forensics as with a field investigation.

This is where India’s ‘Skill-Shoring’ opportunity shines. We aren’t just asking for factories, we are inviting the world to co-create ‘Security Tech’ hubs in Assam. Let’s train a generation of cyber-warriors in Assam and India to protect global interests. If India is the world’s back-office, let it also be the world’s ‘Cyber-Shield’. We have the human capital, we need the partnership to sharpen it into a global force.

Also Read: Rudrasagar Blowout: ONGC’s Disaster Response is a Disaster

Transparency Paradox: Trust vs. Security

My time as Chief Information Commissioner taught me that transparency, like our Right to Information Act, is democracy’s vital pressure valve. It is the cure for the ‘Trust Deficit’ Davos rightly fears. Yet, we face a paradox, how do we stay open while protecting the state from the weaponization of information?

India must champion this delicate balance. We need a global dialogue on AI ethics that prevents the Global South from becoming a testing lab for algorithmic manipulation. We must build systems where transparency strengthens trust, but where safeguards protect society from digital arson.

View from the Ground: Strategic Realism

The perspective from the banks of the Brahmaputra to the Swiss Alps is one of Strategic Realism. We spent decades managing conflict. Now, we are managing explosive growth. But this growth could be fragile. A cyber-attack in Guwahati or a disinformation campaign in Delhi isn’t just India’s problem, it’s a tremor in the global financial system.

The peaceful Alpine silence of Davos is a luxury bought by those who secure the messy peace on the ground. As we dialogue, let’s invest in the digital and social shields that protect our hard-won prosperity. Assam has shown it can be the resilient springboard for India’s ‘Act East’ policy. 

With global partnership that recognizes this new interconnected risk map, it will secure not just its own future, but become a cornerstone of a more stable, thriving world. The Security Dividend is ready. The question is, who will invest in it first?