Answer: In this dynamic world, India has focussed on a foreign policy, which incorporates a smooth conduct of regional relationships through multilateral partnerships enabling mutual cooperation and growth. South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC), as an organisation, reflects the South Asian geographical identity of the countries. However, since its inception in 1985, various initiatives within the SAARC are not moving forward in the desired direction due to various reasons, including:

• Pakistan’s non-cooperation: This has stalled some major initiatives under SAARC such as the SAARC-Motor Vehicles Agreement (MVA) and SAARC satellite project (replaced with BBIN-MVA and South Asia satellite respectively).
• Asymmetry between India and other member countries: The other South Asian countries perceive India as the “big brother” and have been reluctant to implement various agreements under SAARC.
• Lack of trade: Despite South Asia Free Trade Agreement coming into effect, intra-regional trade is around 5%, compared to the ASEAN region where intra-regional trade makes up around 25% as per the World Bank.
• Shortage of resources: SAARC faces a shortage of resources as member countries have been reluctant to increase their contributions.
• Security cooperation: SAARC does not have any arrangement for resolving disputes or mediating conflicts. There is also a lack of consensus on threat perceptions. For instance, while cross-border terrorism emanating from Pakistan is a major concern for India, Pakistan has failed to address these concerns.
• Postponement/cancellation of annual summits: Annual SAARC summits have been postponed more than 10 times for political reasons, either bilateral or internal. In 2021, a meeting of foreign ministers from the SAARC countries was cancelled after most member states refused to entertain Pakistan’s request to allow the Taliban regime to represent Afghanistan in the meeting.

In view of this, it is argued that Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC) can be a better alternative forum for regional cooperation due to following reasons:

• Geo-economic significance: The Bay of Bengal region covered by BIMSTEC is home to around 23% of the world population and its collective economy accounts for 4% of the global GDP.
• Devoid of Pakistan: Negotiations at the SAARC are ineffective due to strains in India’s relations with Pakistan, thus, India is looking for a parallel platform which would be devoid of Pakistan.
• Convergence of Neighbourhood First and Act East Policy: BIMSTEC acts as a bridge between South Asia and South-East Asia. It has also emerged as a platform to realize India’s Neighbourhood First Policy and Act East Policy.
• Realising India’s blue economy potential: BIMSTEC is significant due to its regional integration and maritime security where India can also realize its ‘blue economy’ ambitions.
• Countering China: With China’s aggressive stance in various areas, BIMSTEC helps India counter China multilaterally. This requires economic, political, security and maritime cooperation that is enabled through this organization.
• Shared regional influence: It includes two influential regional powers i.e. Thailand and India, which reduces the fear of dominance by one power.

SAARC and BIMSTEC focus on geographically overlapping regions. However, this does not make them equal alternatives. SAARC is a purely regional organisation, whereas BIMSTEC is an inter- regional organization. They complement each other in terms of functions and goals. BIMSTEC provides SAARC countries a unique opportunity to connect with ASEAN. Further, the success of BIMSTEC does not render SAARC redundant, it adds a new chapter in regional cooperation in South Asia.