RATIONALE OF THE GROUP‌

M.N. Kaul and S.L. Shakdher have nicely explained the rationale of the Indian Parliamentary Group (IPG) in the following way:

The establishment and development of relations among parliaments constitutes part of the regular activities of national parliaments. Although promotion of inter-parliamentary relations has for many years been a significant part of the work of parliamentarians, recently it has received a new thrust due to the increased inter-dependence of nations in a global environment. It is imperative that parliamentarians will join hands to safeguard democracy and work in synergy to confront the challenges before the world and convert them into opportunities to facilitate peace and prosperity in their countries as well as globally. Parliamentarians from different parts of the world, therefore, have a forum where they can meet to discuss and find out solutions to their common problems. It is here that some sort of cross- fertilisation of ideas can take place not only between the older and the younger parliaments, but also between parliamentarians working under different parliamentary systems. These problems are no doubt discussed in inter-governmental conferences; however, those discussions are not so frank and free as they can be at a conclave of legislators.1

Inter-parliamentary relations thus assume great importance today when the whole world is beset with many pressing problems. The problems that are faced by one parliament today may confront another tomorrow. It is, therefore, essential that a link should exist between various parliaments of the world. This link is maintained by India through the exchange of delegations, goodwill missions, correspondence, documents, etc. with foreign parliaments through the machinery of the IPG that acts both as the National Group of the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) and

also as the India Branch of the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association (CPA).2