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Mains Paper 2: IR | India and its neighborhood- relations.
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important:
Prelims level: What is demographic dividend?
Mains level: It is important to know about the issues related to Nepal, as it is our very important neighbour and partner.
News
Context
- The article talks about current situation of Nepal and talks about some regional commons
Achievements of Nepal
- Despite modest economic growth, Nepal halved absolute poverty in the past two decades
- It dramatically reduced rates of child and maternal mortality
- Primary school enrolment, exceeds 97 per cent, and average life expectancy has crossed 70
Future targets of Nepal
- Nepal’s target is to get middle-income country tag by 2030, peopled by a vibrant middle-class
- To achieve this, Nepal needs to mobilise an unprecedented volume of public revenue and private investment
The Areas where India and Nepal can help each other
(1) Wider Connectivity
- Nepal needs to connect with electric railways, expressways and expanded air routes directly connecting more cities in Nepal to more cities in its neighbouring countries
(2) Augmenting Productivity
- Nepal’s formidable topography makes material access to world markets costly
- However, the availability of clean energy, an affordable workforce make Nepal uniquely tempting to investors
(3) Tapping new economic possibilities
- Nepal today faces an enormous trade deficit with India
- The share of Nepal’s manufacturing sector has plunged from a peak of 10 per cent of GDP in 1996 to around 5 per cent today
(4) Applying mass social innovation
- Nepal must adopt social protection measures to counter the challenges posed by inequality and vulnerability
(5) Protecting the regional commons
- South Asia will face a major shortfall in the supply of fresh water over the next decade
- Nepal’s big rivers can be a source of fresh water and clean energy that can displace dirty sources of power in the Subcontinent
- But Nepal support for this, due to its limited resources
The way forward
- Both India and Nepal are dominated by a youthful population with demographic dividends
- By 2020, the median age will still just be 29 in India and 25 in Nepal
- This young population is yet to be reaped
- Cooperation on governing our regional commons is vital for our shared quests of good health and progress
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