Soft power is pursuation, diplomacy, and trade relation, cultural relations, religiou relations . There is no use of power. It is beneficial in long term relationship like goodwill, trade ties, mutual benefits, trade blocks. It helps in gaining advantage in favour of a country, helps in solving trade disputes, boundary disputes, like recently between India can Bangladesh at territorial enclave.India since independent has adopted soft power and chooses non aligned movement. How it is helpful for India:
1.it keeps balance in relations: like at the time of cold war, India got aid from NATO and ussr both. Now when there is conflicts in West and central Asia, tilting towards any one will not help to India. India ahas goodwill and getting favour from all countries. Like remittances fr Indian diaspora, tapi gas pipiline, chabahar port in Iran.
- It keeps India distance from world conflicts: like recently in Syria, Sudan, Israel palastein issue. So India earns god will from all country.
- It saves our foreign exchange: since being a hard power , some use of force is necessary like USA attack on Iraq, Russia adoption of Crimea. During cold war , both USA and Russia diverted its resources in purchasing weapons. So it will save our hard earned money.
- Less expenditure on defence: India’s soft power will make it less vulnerable . So it has to spend less amount on arms purchasing. USA spend nearly 756 billion on its defence expenditure. China is at second position.
Although India has earn a good will due to soft power like favour in mtcr (China still could not get seat in mtcr), nsg waiver given to Ind in 2008, goodwill in Afghanistan, support of Bangladesh in wedding out terrorist camp.but hostile country like Pakistan, China makes us vulnerable. Finally blend of both soft as well as hard power is necessary to be a strong country like USA.