New Delhi, Jan. 9 -- When one of India's premier management institutions invites the foreign minister to speak on diplomacy, statecraft, and global strategy, it exposes students to the realities of governing a complex country. When another comparable institution places youtubers and social media influencers on the same platform, it sends a very different signal. This contrast is not about personalities or professions. It is about what elite institutions choose to legitimise as success-and, by extension, what they teach future leaders to value.

This divergence captures a deeper problem facing India today. The country is producing growth, infrastructure, and technological capability at scale, yet it is simultaneously weakening the conditio...