AdminModel Answers to PYQs (2019-2024)
1] Bhutan has historically been an ally of India, but the China-Bhutan border related issues have become a security issue for India. Discuss. [2024/10m/150w/5b]
India-Bhutan relations occupy a special place amongst India’s relations with all of its neighbours. From the moment the Himalayan nation and New Delhi established diplomatic relations in 1968, there has been a friendly and cooperative relationship between the two countries.
Bhutan is located in the centre of the 4,200 km long disputed boundary between China and India. Also, the disputed Chumbi Valley is close to the Siliguri Corridor, a 20 km wide stretch of Land that connects mainland India with its North East. With China claiming some northern and western parts of Bhutan as its own, it has created a serious security challenge for Bhutan as well as India.
In July 2017, a dispute emerged between China and India over the Doklam Plateau, which lies at the triangle where India, Bhutan and the Chinese border meet. After 2 months of standoff, both China and India decided to withdraw their forces.
As suggested by Professor S D Muni, “Eventually full diplomatic relations will develop between Bhutan and China… India, trying to prevent it will only strengthen the perspective of a big-bullying brother. Hence, instead of trying to prevent it, India should see that as long as our security and strategic concerns are taken care of by Bhutan, it does not oppose the normalization of China-Bhutan ties.” [215 words]
2] Discuss the future prospects of Indo-Nepal relations in the context of the recent publication of new Nepalese map wrongly claiming Indian territory. [2020/10m/150w/5d]
In May 2020, India’s defence minister virtually inaugurated a new 80 km-long road in the Himalayas, connecting to the border with China, at the Lipulekh pass. The Nepali government protested immediately, contending that the road crosses the territory that it claims and accusing India of changing the status quo without diplomatic consultations. All this led to a prolonged strain in the relationship between the two highly knit neighbours.
C. Raja Mohan identifies this territorial dispute as “merely a symptom of the structural changes unfolding in the external and internal context of the bilateral relationship.”
Nepal’s foreign policy establishment has embraced an ambitious and forward-looking agenda of external balancing and diversification in recent years. Kathmandu is widening its geostrategic horizons, seeking to place Nepal as a critical connectivity hub between China, South Asia and the Indian Ocean region. The rising presence of China across the Himalayas, especially after the BRI, forced India to recalibrate its policy towards Nepal. Delhi has begun shifting the emphasis away from geostrategic denial and insulation towards greater economic delivery and connectivity.
Delhi and Kathmandu need to work hard to keep their relationship stable, even if not special. No longer an Indian satellite or exclusive sphere of influence, Nepal has been embracing a policy of strategic diversification to reduce its dependence on India and enhance its non-aligned autonomy. [221 words]
The post contains answers to the last 6-year papers i.e. (2024-2019). Answers to the previous year questions from 2013-2024 are a part of our book PSIR Optional Model Answers to PYQs (2013-2024). Click here to know more.
