The Vice-Admiral KK Nayyar Memorial Lecture 2024 delivered by Shri Swaminathan Gurumurthy, Chairman, Vivekananda International Foundation

The annual “Vice-Admiral KK Nayyar Memorial Lecture” was instituted by the National Maritime Foundation (NMF), New Delhi, to honour the multitudinous achievements and invaluable service to the nation of the late Vice-Admiral Kewal Krishan Nayyar, PVSM, AVSM, IN, the Founding Chairman of the NMF, with the active support and encouragement of his family members. 

The Vice-Admiral KK Nayyar Memorial Lecture 2024 on the “Rise of Civilisational Consciousness and Civilisational Nationalism” was delivered by Shri Swaminathan Gurumurthy, Chairman of the Vivekananda International Foundation (VIF), on the felicitous occasion of the 19th Foundation Day of the NMF on Thursday, 15 February 2024. 

The distinguished dignitaries in attendance included Admiral R Hari Kumar, PVSM, AVSM, VSM, ADC, the Chief of the Naval Staff and patron of the NMF, Admiral Karambir Singh,  PVSM, AVSM, IN (Retd), Former Chief of the Naval Staff and Chairman of the NMF, Admiral RK Dhowan, PVSM, AVSM, YSM, IN (Retd), Former Chief of the Naval Staff and Chairman of the Society for Aerospace Maritime and Defence Studies (SAMDeS), Mr Ashok Nayyar and Ms Gita Nayyar, the son and daughter respectively of the late VAdm KK Nayyar, members and close friends of the Nayyar family, general officers, flag officers, air officers, serving and veteran, defence experts, and academics. 

The event opened with introductory remarks by Vice-Admiral Pradeep Chauhan, AVSM & Bar, VSM, IN (Retd), the Director-General of the NMF, remembering with gratitude the enormous contribution of the late VAdm KK Nayyar in setting up of the NMF as India’s first maritime think-tank, as well as the Vivekananda International Foundation (VIF).  He underscored the significance of the work the NMF undertakes in the fields of research, advocacy,  convening, and raising awareness about the maritime domain through its internship and outreach programmes. 

The inaugural address was delivered by Admiral R Hari Kumar, PVSM, AVSM, VSM, ADC, the Chief of the Naval Staff, IN, who hailed the late VAdm KK Nayyar’s tireless efforts at setting up the NMF to become “a bright and enduring beacon, dispelling the maritime myopia which had affected Bharat for so much of its history.”  He commended the NMF’s collaboration with the Indian Navy towards formulating the landmark “Indian Maritime Security Strategy (IMSS),” released in 2015, as well as its contribution towards the formulation of The Maritime Anti-Piracy Act of 2022.  On a similar note, he praised the VIF’s long and distinguished history of contributing to critical national security issues.  In his address, he emphasised the need for developing maritime thought, recalled the glorious history of seafaring and naval dominance of India, and noted with satisfaction the increasing significance of the maritime domain in India’s national security calculus.  In closing, he reaffirmed the late Vice-Admiral’s vision of reinvigorating India’s maritime primacy and underlined the Indian Navy’s plans of becoming fully Atmanirbhar and a “Post-Modern Navy” before 2047. 

Thereafter, Ms Gita Nayyar paid tribute to her father’s memory by remembering his love and vision for India to become a global leader and a maritime power.  She reminded the audience of the significant role he envisaged for independent organisations such as think-tanks, supported by quality research and long-term strategic thinking.  She further remembered her father’s commitment to nationalism and pride in culture, religion, and tradition, traits he shared with Shri Swaminathan Gurumurthy.

Shri Gurumurthy began his highly anticipated address by remembering with fondness his relationship and long-standing collaboration with the late VAdm KK Nayyar, a visionary and strategic leader par excellence who recognised the unique civilisational orientation of India and the global responsibility it entailed for the nation.  He noted with regret how the current trend of super-specialisation in the pursuit of knowledge has stymied the  development of strategic leadership in the country and needs changing.  He opined that the primary civilisational challenge facing India is the incongruity between its inclusive values and a global order which is adversarial, even hostile, to them.  To address this, he proposed, a national strategic narrative, informed by the rising civilisational consciousness being witnessed in the country, is imperative.  He further underscored its importance at a time when the global order is undergoing a seismic shift, and the consequent rise of middle powers lends an opportunity for India to emerge as a strategic power and key geopolitical influencer. 

Employing Anne-Marie Slaughter’s distinction between the U.S.’ exceptionalism and universalism in global affairs, Shri Gurumurthy noted that, in India’s case, there is a fusion of the two in the philosophy of “Vasudhaiva kutumbakam,” which invites enormous national security risk for the country.  His principal recommendation was that contemporary Indian strategic thinking has to be informed by its historical strategic culture to ensure that our exceptionalism is aligned with global universalism, and not our own universalism. 

The session concluded with a vote of thanks to the esteemed speaker, Shri Swaminathan Gurumurthy, for sharing his intellectually acute insights on the topic that was close to the late Vice-Admiral’s heart.