Answer: The idea of re-integrating India’s neighborhood through a sub-regional approach began to emerge in the late 1990s, but it was only in the mid-2000s that a sustained push for sub-regional connectivity started to take concrete shape. Recently, marking 50 years of Bangladesh’s independence, India and Bangladesh made a joint decision to explore sub-regional connectivity initiatives with additional road and railway connectivity links to Nepal as well as rail links to Bhutan via Indian Territory. Various steps taken in sub-regional connectivity

• BBIN (Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, and Nepal) sub-regional Motor Vehicle Agreement (MVA) in 2015 bringing together the Bay of Bengal and the Himalayan sub-regions.
• The India-Myanmar-Thailand Trilateral Highway project and the sea-river-land Kaladan Multi-Modal Transit Transport Project aim to develop transport infrastructure in western Myanmar and North-eastern India to form the key connectivity projects in linking India with the Mekong subregion.
• The Chabahar agreement between Afghanistan, India, and Iran aims to fulfill the idea of building a sub-region around the Arabian Sea.

Importance of sub-regional connectivity for India in its neighbourhood

• To boost trade & commerce: Transport corridors are the arteries through which trade, commerce, and people flow within and across countries.
  • They become platforms for reducing poverty, generating employment, and promoting sustainable development by creating new economic opportunities for the countries being connected.
  • For example, seamless transport connectivity between India and Bangladesh has the potential to increase the national income of Bangladesh by 17 percent and 8 percent in India.
  • Further, improved transport connectivity between India and Bangladesh could increase India’s exports by 172 percent while Bangladesh’s exports to India could almost rise 3 times.
• Geostrategic response to China: China has massively expanded its diplomatic, economic, and political footprint across South Asia.
  • India needs to rethink its strategy because the default outcome of what the BRI is likely to accomplish in India’s periphery is its steady economic integration with China and the marginalization of India in its own neighborhood.
  • India is the largest transit country in the subcontinent and India’s geographic location and size make it a natural connector for its immediate neighbours and beyond.
• Countering terrorism and extremism: Improved sub-regional connectivity can also help counter terrorism and extremism by promoting greater understanding and cooperation between neighboring countries and by reducing the opportunities for extremist groups to operate across borders.
• Better diplomatic relations in the region: Better connectivity in India’s sub-regions will support the idea of wider integration between South Asia, Southeast Asia, West Asia, Central Asia, eastern Africa, and the Indian Ocean where India can take the leading role.
• Foster Cultural exchange: Sub-regional connectivity will increase India’s engagement with other countries in its neighborhood and help in the development of the region based on the principles of cultural thinking and civilizational ethos.

However, India’s sub-regional approach towards its neighborhood faces several challenges such as political instability as well as economic imbalances between countries in the region. Further, border disputes between India and some of its neighboring countries can also pose a challenge to sub-regional initiatives, as they can create tensions and disrupt trade and investment flows. Thus, an Indian connectivity strategy will have to consider the political, economic, and cultural sensitivities of the neighboring countries. At the same time, re-integrating the subcontinent by re-discovering the old as well as building new land, sea, and riverine corridors should be a key focus. Moreover, India should invest relatively more in the soft dimensions of connectivity, including capacity building.

Answer: India had a bilateral approach to its relations with South Asian neighbors in the past, as it preferred to engage in direct negotiations with each country on specific issues and bilateral high-level visits, rather than relying on regional coordination. India also provided development assistance to individual countries and focused on negotiating trade agreements with individual countries rather than pursuing a regional development and trade mechanism. However, India is no longer wedded to ‘bilateralism only’ in its approach and is adopting a multilateral approach with its immediate neighbors in the following ways:

• South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC): It consists of 8 South Asian nations and provides a platform for India to engage with rival countries like Pakistan at the regional level. For instance, during the COVID-19 crisis, India proposed a COVID-19 Emergency Fund and supplied vaccines to SAARC nations under its grant assistance.
• The Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC): It consists of 7 South Asian and South-East Asian countries. It is important for India’s ‘Act East Policy’ and provides the strategic benefit of engaging with other SAARC nations (Bangladesh, Bhutan, Nepal, and Sri Lanka) without influence from Pakistan and China. Successful cooperation is reflected by the BIMSTEC Start-up Conclave (2021), BIMSTEC Conclave of Ports Summit (2019), and BIMSTEC Master Plan for transport connectivity (2022).
• Indian Ocean Rim Association: It consists of 23 countries of the Indian Ocean region. India revitalized the association in 2011 and identified its 6 priority areas. Further, Security and Growth for All in the Region (SAGAR) has been launched by India for maritime security in the Indian Ocean region.
• Efforts towards cooperation with maritime neighbors: For instance, Project Mausam for cultural diplomacy with 39 countries in the Indian Ocean region and Mission Sagar to assist the 15 littoral states of the Indian Ocean during the COVID-19 pandemic.
• Setting up of the BBIN (Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Nepal) subregional cooperation: India successfully signed the BBIN Motor Vehicle Agreement (2015) when its proposal for SAARC MVA failed.

Challenges pertaining to effective cooperation in the region are as follows:

• Political differences and conflicts: South Asian countries have a history of political tensions and conflicts, thereby breeding mistrust and hindering collaboration among them.
  • The progress of SAARC has stalled over the years due to Indo-Pak relations.
  • The progress of BIMSTEC has also been underscored by Bangladesh-Myanmar relations over the Rohingya refugee crisis and the India-Nepal border issue.
• Economic imbalances: The economic disparities between the countries affect their capacity to participate effectively together, especially during crises such as the COVID-19 pandemic or natural calamities.
• Weak institutional mechanisms: For instance, despite the South Asian Free Trade Area (SAFTA) coming into effect as early as 2006, intra-regional trade continues to be at a meager five percent.
• Slow progress in regional integration: For instance, despite signing the BBIN MVA in 2015, Bhutan backed out of it in 2017.
• Dependence on external powers: China manages to influence other nations despite not being a part of the regional groupings through its debt trap policy and the Belt and Road Initiative.

Although over the last decade, India has made significant progress in connecting with its neighbors, India’s neighborhood policy is still a work in progress as the region adapts to new security challenges.