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Subject: Bilateral Relations

1. Major World Events
2. India’s Interests in neighbourhood
3. Effects of our Policies

  • Operation Devi Shakti

    India has termed the evacuation operation from Afghanistan in the backdrop of the Taliban’s takeover of the country last week as “Operation Devi Shakti”.

    Operation Devi Shakti

    • Operation Devi Shakti is an ongoing operation of the Indian Armed Forces to evacuate Indian citizens and foreign nationals after the fall of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan to the Taliban.

    Major evacuations undertaken

    • Up till now, around 400 individuals from Kabul have been evacuated that covered Indian citizens as well as Afghan nationals including Sikhs and Hindus of Afghanistan.
    • Hundreds of Indian nationals have to be taken out of Kabul which is now under the Taliban’s control.
    • India is airlifting its citizens through Dushanbe in Tajikistan and Qatar.
    • The Indian Air Force has already evacuated around many passengers including its Ambassador to Afghanistan and all other diplomats.

  • Taliban and new realpolitik

    Context

    As the last American soldiers fly out of Kabul airport and the world adapts to the return of the Taliban, three uncomfortable but enduring features of international politics have come into sharp focus.

    1) The normalisation of the Taliban by the International community

    • That victories on the battlefield have political consequences is one of the fundamental features of international politics.
    • There is no reason for India to be surprised at the rapid normalisation of the Taliban by the international community.
    • Whether it likes the new and victorious sovereign or not, a government has the obligation to secure its national interests — ranging from the protection of its citizens and property to maintaining the regional balance of power.
    • India is not immune to this essential principle of international relations and will find ways to protect its stakes in Afghanistan under Taliban rule.

    2) Future U.S. relations with the Taliban

    • The second enduring feature of world politics — that there are no permanent friends or enemies, only permanent interests.
    • Convergence of interests: The US would want to explore if the Taliban can help secure long-term American interests in preventing a regrouping of international terror outfits like the al Qaeda and ISIS in Afghanistan.
    • The Taliban on the other hand would want American and Western support in rebuilding Afghanistan.
    • It is by no means clear if such a deal can be clinched, given the big risks it presents to both sides.
    • The US engagement with the Taliban to counter the ISIS-K has been met with derision across the world.
    • Critics say all these groups are part of the same school of terror, driven by similar religious zeal and nurtured in Pakistan’s sanctuaries.

    3) Exploit the differences between adversaries: Way forward for India

    • The third feature of international politics is that differences even among the closest of friends are natural and always offer openings to adversaries.
    • For India, the main interest is in preventing Afghan soil from being used by anti-India terror groups.
    • At least a section of the Taliban is eager to continue political and commercial engagement with India.
    • This is part of a natural quest for a diversified set of international partnerships.
    • India would be right to wait patiently on the Taliban’s ability to deliver on these promises and stand up against the Pakistan army’s pressures to keep India out.
    • Exploit the contradictions: India should not rule out contradictions between Pakistan and the terror groups it has nurtured as well as among various jihadi organisations.
    • Despite its powerful appeal, religious ideology has failed to build durable political coalitions within and across nations.

    Conclusion

    Given this history, it is unwise for Delhi to paint the external challenges arising from the Afghan tumult as a single coherent force. The Panchatantra has a more sensible strategy to offer — try and divide your potential adversaries and strengthen your internal unity.

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  • India must leverage its unique strengths in remaining engaged with Kabul

    Context

    In the chaos that has followed the Taliban takeover of Kabul on August 15, India has been relatively silent.

    India’s role in Afghanistan’s development

    • India’s role spanned three areas in Afghanistan:
    • In terms of infrastructure building and development assistance, encompassing all 34 provinces of the country.
    • In terms of building democracy, helping script the Constitution and hold elections.
    • In terms of educational investment, allowing thousands of young Afghans to study, be trained as professionals and soldiers, and become skilled in India.
    • India was the first country that Afghanistan signed a strategic partnership with.
    • India was the only country that undertook perilous but ambitious projects such Parliament, the Zaranj-Delaram Highway, and the Chabahar port project in Iran for transit trade.
    • India was by far the one country that polled consistently highly among countries that Afghan people trusted. 
    • What should India do now? India should not choose to simply walk away from such capital, regardless of the developments in Afghanistan, domestic political considerations in India and geopolitical sensitivities.

    The marginalisation of India’s role in negotiations over Afghanistan

    • No other power from the west to the east has considered India’s interests while charting its course on Afghanistan.
    • India has found itself cut out of several quadrilateral arrangements: the main negotiations held by the “Troika plus” of the United States-Russia-China-Pakistan that pushed for a more “inclusive government” including the Taliban.
    • The alternative grouping of Russia-Iran-China-Pakistan that formed a “regional arc” that has today seen them retain their embassies in Kabul.
    • Neither India’s traditional strategic and defence partner, Russia, nor its fastest growing global strategic partner, the United States, thought it important to include India.
    • It is time to accept that India is in need of a new diplomatic strategy.

    Way forward for India

    1) Leveraging its position at the UN

    •  India needs to begin by rallying the United Nations, to exert its considerable influence in its own interest, and that of the Afghan “republic”, which is an idea that cannot be just abandoned.
    • Next, India must take a leading role in the debate over who will be nominated to the Afghan seat at the UN depending on the new regime in Afghanistan committing to international norms on human rights, women’s rights, minority rights and others.
    • As Chairman of the Taliban Sanctions Committee (or the 1988 Sanctions Committee), India must use its muscle to ensure terrorists such as Sirajuddin Haqqani must not be given any exemptions: on travel, recourse to funds or arms.

    2) India’s engagement with Afghanistan

    • The question of whether India should convert its back-channel talks with the Taliban and with Pakistan in the past few months into something more substantive remains to be debated.
    • This becomes more important as India now faces a “threat umbrella” to its north, including Pakistan’s cross-border terrorism, Afghanistan’s new regime and China’s aggression at the Line of Actual Control.
    • A more broad-based and consultative process of engaging all political parties would be required.
    • While not directly dealing with the Taliban, India must ensure stronger communication with those who are dealing directly, including leaders such as former Afghanistan President Hamid Karzai, to ensure its interests.
    • As a part of its engagement, India must consider whether to revive its assistance to the resistance, which at present includes Ahmad Shah Massoud Jr., Amrullah Saleh, Abdul Rashid Dostum and Atta Mohammad Noor.

    3) Engagement with the Afghan people

    • The Government must embrace its greatest strength in Afghanistan — its relations with the Afghan people — and open its doors to those who wish to come here.
    • In particular, India must continue to facilitate medical visas for Afghan patients and extend the education visas for students who are already admitted to Indian colleges.

    Conclusion

    It is India’s soft power, strategic autonomy or non-alignment principles and selfless assistance to those in need, particularly in its neighbourhood, that has been the strongest chords to its unique voice in the world. The moment to make that voice heard on Afghanistan is now.

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  • Greater Male Connectivity Project

    Maldives has announced the signing of a $500-million infrastructure project for the construction of the Greater Malé Connectivity Project (GMCP) with India.

    Greater Malé Connectivity Project

    • This infrastructure project, the largest-ever by India in the Maldives, involves the construction of a 6.74-km-long bridge and causeway link.
    • It will connect the Maldives capital Malé with the neighbouring islands of Villingli, Gulhifalhu and Thilafushi.
    • The seeds of the project were planted during the External Affairs Minister’s visit to Malé in September 2019.
    • The GMCP is not only the biggest project India is doing in the Maldives but also the biggest infrastructure project in the Maldives overall.

    Significance of the Project

    • This project is significant because it facilitates inter-island connectivity in the country
    • Transport is a major challenge for residents who have to take boats or seaplanes to distant islands.
    • It becomes even more difficult during the monsoons when the seas are rough.
    • This bridge that would connect Malé with the three neighboring islands would ease the process.

    The Chinese-made 1.39 km-long Sinamalé Bridge connects Malé with the islands of Hulhulé and Hulhumalé and this project, four tiles longer, would link the other three islands.

    Why it is needed?

    • Male is one of the most densely populated cities in the world.
    • Close to 40% of the entire population of the Maldives lives in Malé, which has an area of approximately 8.30 square kilometres.
    • It is very congested and land is a major issue.

    Why these islands?

    • On the island of Gulhifalhu, a port, is at present being built under the Indian line of credit.
    • Located some 6 kilometers from Malé, since 2016, the island has been promoted as a strategic location for manufacturing, warehousing and distribution facilities due to its proximity to the capital city.
    • Located 7 km from the capital, the artificial island of Thilafushi was created and designated as a landfill in the early 1990s, to receive garbage created mostly in Malé.
    • The Maldives has plans of expanding industrial work on Thilafushi, making this bridge’s connectivity to the capital indispensable for the transport of employees and other services.

    Why did Male opt for India’s offer?

    • After a five-year grace period, the interest rate is 1.75% and the Maldives has to repay it over a 20-year period.
    • India’s loans are less expensive and more transparent, unlike China’s.
    • The Maldives hasn’t really been clear about how much debt it owes to China.

    Importance of Maldives for India

    • Geo-strategic importance: Maldives, a Toll Gate in the Indian Ocean. Located in the southern and northern parts of this island chain lies the two important sea lanes of communication (SLOCs).
    • Trade: These SLOCs are critical for maritime trade flow between the Gulf of Aden and Gulf of Hormuz in West Asia and the Strait of Malacca in Southeast Asia. Nearly 50% of India’s external trade and 80% of its energy imports transit these SLOCs in the Arabian Sea.
    • Important SAARC member: Besides, Maldives is a member of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) and the South Asia Subregional Economic Cooperation (SASEC).
    • People To People Contact: There is a significant population of Maldivian students in India. They are aided by a liberal visa-free regime extended by India. There is also medical tourism.
    • Economic Cooperation: Tourism is the mainstay of the Maldivian economy. The country is now a major tourist destination for some Indians and a job destination for others.

    What hinders India in Male?

    • Unstable governments: India’s major concern has been the impact of political instability in the neighbourhood on its security and development.
    • Religious extremism: In the past decade or so, the number of Maldivians drawn towards terrorist groups like the Islamic State (IS) and Pakistan-based madrassas and jihadist groups has been increasing.
    • Affinity with China: China’s strategic footprint in India’s neighbourhood has increased. The Maldives has emerged as an important ‘pearl’ in China’s “String of Pearls” construct in South Asia. It has also started using the China card to bargain with India.

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  • What is Shariah Law?

    The Taliban have pledged that women in Afghanistan will have rights “within the bounds of Islamic law,” or Shariah, under their newly established rule.

    What is Shariah?

    • Shariah is based on the Quran, stories of the Prophet Muhammad’s life, and the rulings of religious scholars, forming the moral and legal framework of Islam.
    • The Quran details a path to a moral life, but not a specific set of laws.

    Interpreting Shariah

    • The interpretations of Shariah are a matter of debate across the Muslim world, and all groups and governments that base their legal systems on Shariah have done so differently.
    • One interpretation of Shariah could afford women extensive rights, while another could leave women with few.
    • Critics have said that some of the Taliban restrictions on women under the guise of Islamic law actually went beyond the bounds of Shariah.
    • When the Taliban say they are instituting Shariah law, that does not mean they are doing so in ways that Islamic scholars or other Islamic authorities would agree with.

    What does Shariah prescribe?

    • Shariah lists some specific crimes, such as theft and adultery, and punishments if accusations meet a standard of proof.
    • It also offers moral and spiritual guidance, such as when and how to pray, or how to marry and divorce.
    • It does not forbid women to leave home without a male escort or bar them from working in most jobs.

    How has the Taliban previously interpreted Shariah?

    • When the Taliban controlled Afghanistan from 1996 to 2001, they banned television and most musical instruments.
    • They established a department for the Promotion of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice based on a Saudi model.

    Restrictions imposed on Women

    • Restrictions on behavior, dress, and movement were enforced by morality police officers, who drove around in pickup trucks, publicly humiliating and whipping women who did not adhere to their rules.
    • In 1996, a woman in Kabul, Afghanistan, had the end of her thumb cut off for wearing nail polish, according to Amnesty International.
    • Other restrictions include a ban on schooling for girls, and publicly bashing people who violated the group’s morality code.
    • Women accused of adultery are stoned to death.

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  • The Abraham Accords as India’s West Asia bridge

    Context

    The recent visit by the Indian Air Force chief, to Israel offers a window to study how India is taking advantage of the Abraham Accords deal signed between Israel and a consortium of Arab States led by the United Arab Emirates (UAE) in 2020.

    Increasing defence cooperation between India and West Asia region

    • India’s trajectory towards an increased strategic footprint in West Asia has been in development for some time now.
    • Starting from the relatively low-key staging visit to Saudi Arabia conducted by the IAF in 2015.
    • India hosted visiting Iranian naval warships in 2018.
    • India takes an active part in the defence of the critical waterways in and around the Persian Gulf, the Arabian Sea and the extended Indian Ocean Region (IOR).
    • An Indian contingent of the Indian Air Force (IAF) will visit Israel in October to take part in multilateral military exercises.
    • India also conducted the ‘Zayed Talwar’ naval exercises with the UAE off the coast of Abu Dhabi, further deepening the fast-developing strategic cooperation between the two countries.
    • In December 2020, Indian Army chief visited the UAE and Saudi Arabia, becoming the first chief of the Indian Army to do so.
    • In 2017, India signed a deal with Oman, the home to Duqm Port  for access to the facility, including dry dock use by the Indian Navy.

    How Abraham Accords accelerated India’s engagement with West Asia region?

    • No need for balancing act: The signing of the Accords has removed a significant strategic obstacle for India — delicate balancing act India has had to play out between the Arab Gulf and Israel over the decades.
    • India had welcomed the Accords, highlighting its support for mechanisms that offer peace and stability in the region.
    • From the UAE’s perspective, Accords were to make sure the emirate along with its international centres of trade such as Dubai and Abu Dhabi do not become targets between Jerusalem and Tehran.
    • However, not all Arab States have been on board with the geopolitical shifts the Accords have pushed through.
    • Saudi Arabia has maintained a distance from this arrangement.

    India’s West Asia construct and relations with Iran

    • Iran, as part of India’s ‘West Asia’ construct, will also play a significant part in India’s outreach in the months to come as the crisis in Afghanistan deepens.
    • Connectivity projects such as Chabahar Port and Chabahar-Zahedan rail project (project discussions are still on) amongst others remain critical.
    • Recently,  strategic cooperation revitalised despite multiple obstacles in the bilateral relations, led by U.S. sanctions against Tehran and the general tensions between Israel, the Gulf and Iran via proxy battles in theatres such as Yemen, Syria and beyond.

    Conclusion

    India’s strategic play in West Asia will be reflective of its economic growth, and by association, an increasingly important place in the global order.

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  • Understanding the strategic flux and humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan

    Context

    The Afghan government and its defence forces have completely collapsed. The world over, television screens are full of images of the extraordinary takeover of Afghanistan by the Taliban.

    Background of the US intervention in Afghanistan

    • The original trigger for the US military intervention in Afghanistan was the 9/11 attacks.
    • The objective then was to eliminate the al Qaeda sanctuaries hosted by the Taliban.
    • That goal was quickly attained, as was another one — the elimination of Osama Bin Laden in Abbottabad, Pakistan, in 2011.
    • The US was thereafter stuck into a vortex in which its mission oscillated between counter-terrorism and counter-insurgency. 
    • The military presence in Afghanistan has been questioned by the US political firmament for a decade.

    Factors driving the US exit

    • China factor: The US now regards China as its principal strategic competitor.
    • China’s muscle-flexing in the East and South China Seas calls for a renewed effort by the US to protect its stakes.
    • The rise of China is the main geo-strategic threat for the US.
    • In 2001, the US had taken its eye off the ball in diverting its attention to the global war on terror.
    • Beginning with Afghanistan, it meandered through Iraq, Libya and Syria, with mixed results.
    • Taiwan: China’s recent ratcheting up of pressure on Taiwan has also sounded the alarm.

    Implications of Taliban’s return for region

    • The new regime in Kabul is likely to open the door to economic investments from China.
    • At the geopolitical level, the BRI may well receive a boost, given China’s interests in connectivity that could straddle the region, from Pakistan to Iran.
    • Pakistan has shown alacrity in welcoming the change of guard in Kabul.
    • The change in Afghanistan has security implications for India and the region at large.
    • A spill-over of any chaos and instability in Afghanistan beyond its borders could give terrorism a shot in the arm.
    • It could also singe Pakistan if it does not review its malevolent practices, which favour terror as an instrument of state policy.

    Way forward for India

    • India should prioritise the welfare of the Afghan people, whenever the opportunity presents itself.
    • Currently, about 2,500 Afghan students are enrolled in educational and vocational institutions across India.
    • They will no doubt wish to extend their scholarships.
    • As a close neighbour, India has keen stakes in ensuring a stable, secure and developed Afghanistan.
    • As the rotational President of the UN Security Council for August, India has an opportunity to engage important stakeholders on the way forward.
    • Beyond that too, India’s presence in the UN Security Council till the end of 2022 will provide a platform to explore options with greater flexibility.

    Conclusion

    The global community needs to underscore the continued participation of women in governance in Afghanistan and keep an eye on violations of human rights and international humanitarian law.

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  • India’s fate is tied to the rest of the world

    Context

    Ever since Independence, India’s fate has been closely tied to the rest of the world.

    How global interactions and how it shaped India

    • A large, newly independent, impoverished, and diverse country required active engagement with a variety of partners for its survival, security, and development.
    • But a constantly evolving international environment presented India not just with opportunities but numerous challenges.
    • Poorly demarketed borders: Its frontiers were initially poorly demarcated and poorly integrated.
    • Nuclear-armed neighbours: India came to have two nuclear-armed neighbors with which it competed for territory.
    • Relations with the US and Russia: India’s first leaders opted for flexible and friendly relations with both the U.S. and the Soviet Union and their respective allies.
    • The Indo-Soviet Treaty of Friendship and Cooperation and the Bangladesh war altered India’s relations with both superpowers and shifted the dynamics of the rivalry with Pakistan.
    • Role in global politics: India also played an activist role in the decolonizing world, extending diplomatic and (in some cases) security assistance to independence movements in Asia and Africa and sending military missions to Korea and the Congo.
    • Economic progress: There were also important economic strides made, including the Green Revolution, undertaken with considerable foreign technical and financial assistance.
    • Independent policy: India often found itself at odds with the great powers when it felt its greater interests were threatened, as on intervention in Bangladesh, nuclear non-proliferation, or trade.

    India after the Cold War

    • The 1991 Gulf war resulted in a balance of payments crisis and the liberalization of the economy.
    • India then adopted a range of reforms to liberalize the economy, but it faced more than just economic turmoil.
    • Yet, the period that followed witnessed some important developments under the prime ministership of P.V. Narasimha Rao:
    • The period saw the advent of the Look East Policy and relations with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations
    • It also saw the establishment of diplomatic ties with Israel.
    • The signing of a border peace and tranquility agreement with China took place in the same period
    • The period also witnessed initial military contracts with the U.S., and preparations for nuclear tests.
    • The Atal Bihari Vajpayee government built further upon these developments, conducting a series of tests in 1998, negotiating a return to normal relations with most major powers within two years.
    • Economic development: These years also witnessed a rapid growth of the Indian economy, fuelled by a boom in information and communication technology companies, the services sector, and a rising consumer market.
    • After 2004, the Manmohan Singh government worked extensively to resolve the outstanding question of India’s nuclear status.
    • By eliminating barriers to ‘dual use’ technologies and equipment, as well as a host of associated export controls, India had the opportunity to establish robust defense relations with the U.S. and its allies.
    • Coupled with an economic deceleration after 2011, India’s relations with the U.S. and Europe grew more contentious over the next three years.

    Relationship with China

    • The global financial crisis in 2008-09 presaged a slight change in approach, whereby India sought to partner with China and other rising powers on institutional reform, financial lending, climate change, and sovereignty.
    • Beginning in 2013,  China began to test India on the border and undermine Indian interests in South Asia and the Indian Ocean Region.
    • With further stand-offs at Doklam and Ladakh between 2017 and 2021, India opted to boycott China’s Belt and Road Initiative, raise barriers to Chinese investment.
    • In response, India began consulting more closely with other balancing powers in the Indo-Pacific.
    • Security relations and understandings with the U.S. and its allies (Japan, France, Australia) accelerated after 2014.
    • A greater emphasis on neighborhood connectivity was adopted.

    Way forward

    • As India enters its 75th year of independence, there are plenty of reasons for cautious optimism about its place in the world.
    • COVID-19 and growing international competition also underscore the difficulties that India will likely face as it attempts to transform into a prosperous middle-income country.
    • What is certain is that India will not have the luxury to turn inwards.

    Conclusion

    India’s objectives have been broadly consistent: development, regional security, a balance of power, and the shaping of international consensus to be more amenable to Indian interests. At the same time, India’s means and the international landscape have changed, as have domestic political factors.

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  • Understanding the anxieties behind Chinese aggression towards India

    Context

    Chinese President Xi Jinping made a surprise visit to Tibet on July 21, signalling the seriousness with which China continues to take its Himalayan border dispute with India.

    Understanding China’s strategic challenges and intensions

    • Demonstration of political confidence through aggression: More than a year after the clash at Galwan Valley, efforts to resolve the border crisis continue to move slowly.
    • The Chinese side has previously failed to complete troop withdrawals and revert to the status quo that the Indian side believed China agreed to.
    • China’s behaviour has been calculated to demonstrate political confidence.
    • Worsening strategic environment for China: Seen from Beijing, the strategic environment for China is beginning to worsen in South and Central Asia.
    • As the US withdraws and the Taliban advances in Afghanistan, China fears the prospect of instability and an emerging haven for terrorism directed against its policies in Xinjiang.
    • Even as China seeks to scale back the debt-laden BRI, such instability may also result in Beijing increasing its already overstretched external commitments — particularly in the security domain.
    • Re-emergence of Quad: China is deeply worried by the re-emergence and strengthening of multilateral opposition to China, and the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue (or “Quad”) between the US, Japan, Australia and India.
    • For China, this represents a persistent threat not only economically and in foreign policy, but also militarily along its maritime periphery in the South and East China Seas, as well as the Taiwan Strait.
    • As US multilateral cooperation with its partners has increased, Beijing has come to increasingly see itself as beset by threats on all sides.

    China’s 2 possible responses to strategic challenges and its implications for India

    • 1) Wolf warrier diplomacy: So far, the response from China’s new class of “wolf warrior” diplomats to this emerging strategic challenge has been to only grow more assertive in rhetoric and behaviour.
    • China’s domestic politics: Response of wolf warrior diplomats may seem perplexing, given that it has served only to alienate other countries and isolate China further.
    •  China’s domestic politics in the lead up to the 20th Congress will mean that its leaders, diplomats and generals will be displaying maximum nationalistic fervour.
    • Implications for India: This may well mean China taking political and policy decisions, which in a normal season they would not because doing so could compromise Beijing’s longstanding diplomatic and strategic goals, including in dealings with India.
    • 2) Moderate approach to improve strategic position: But if instead of aggressive posture, China decided that it was better domestic politics to improve China’s strategic position in Asia amid its competition with Washington, Beijing’s diplomats may yet adopt a more moderate approach, including with India.
    • Implications for India: If stability can be restored to the China-India strategic relationship, this could provide a window for Asia’s two mega-economies to reopen their markets to each other.

    Conclusion

    Indeed, the choice China makes between these two alternatives will have implications for India and the rest of the world in their dealing with China.

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  • Visualizing the Himalaya with other coordinates

    A conceptual audit of questions related to geopolitics and security concerns while talking or thinking about the Himalaya is perhaps long overdue.

    About the Himalayas

    • The Himalayas are a mountain range in South and East Asia separating the plains of the Indian subcontinent from the Tibetan Plateau.
    • The range has many of Earth’s highest peaks, including the highest, Mount Everest, at the border between Nepal and China.
    • Lifted by the subduction of the Indian tectonic plate under the Eurasian Plate, the Himalayan Mountain range runs west-northwest to east-southeast in an arc 2,400 km.
    • It consists of parallel mountain ranges: the Sivalik Hills on the south; the Lower Himalayan Range; the Great Himalayas, which is the highest and central range; and the Tibetan Himalayas on the north.
    • The Karakoram are generally considered separate from the Himalayas.

    Identity of Himalayas: Only as a frontier

    • We have been examining the Himalaya mainly through the coordinates of geopolitics and security while relegating others as either irrelevant or incompatible.
    • In a certain sense, our intellectual concerns over the Himalaya have been largely shaped by the assumption of fear, suspicion, rivalry, invasion, encroachment and pugnacity.
    • If during colonial times it was Russophobia, then now it is Sinophobia or Pakistan phobia that in fact determines our concerns over the Himalayas.
    • Ironically it is the Delhi-Beijing-Islamabad triad, and not the mountain per se, that defines our concerns about the Himalayas.

    A national Himalaya

    • Border issues has given birth to the political compulsion of territorializing the Himalaya on a par with the imperatives of nationalism.
    • Thus the attempt to create a national Himalaya by each of the five nations (Nepal, Bhutan, India, Pakistan, and Tibet/China) fall within this transnational landmass called the Himalaya.

    India and the Himalayas

    • India’s understanding of the Himalayas is informed by a certain kind of realism, as it continues to remain as space largely defined in terms of sovereign territoriality.
    • It may be perceived that such an alternative conceptualization of Himalayas is not only possible but also necessary.

    Various initiatives

    • National Mission on Himalayan Studies: It is a classic case in point that provides funds for research and technological innovations, but creating policies only for the Indian Himalayan Region (IHR).

    A historical logjam of territorialization

    • The Himalayas territorialization bears a colonial legacy which also sets up its post-colonial destiny as played out within the dynamics of nation-states.
    • The arbitration of relationships between and among the five nation-states falling within the Himalayan landmass has failed to transcend.
    • The lines of peoplehood and the national border never coincided; thus, it was bound to give birth to tensions while working out projects predicated upon national sovereignty.
    • Given this historical logjam, what we can only expect is the escalation of territorial disputes as the immediate fallout.

    Borders and their differences

    • It needs to be recognized that political borders and cultural borders are not the same things.
    • Political borders are to be considered as space-making strategies of modern nation-states that do not necessarily coincide with cultural borders.
    • It needs to be realized that the domain of non-traditional security (cases of ecological devastation, climate change) is equally important.

    Conclusion

    • The Himalaya is a naturally evolved phenomenon should be understood through frameworks that have grown from within the Himalaya.
    • Viewing the Himalayas as a space of political power is a violent choice, which actually enriched ultra-sensitivity towards territorial claims and border management.