Bhutan PM's five-day visit to India in March 2024 which was followed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s two-day visit to Bhutan is expected to ease mutual concerns about a possible border agreement with China.
While Bhutan's transition from a least developed country (LDC) to a middle-income country is undeniably optimistic, its journey beyond LDC status lies in mindful governance and strategic planning.
This volume includes a collection of papers contributed by eminent scholars and analysts from the South Asian region on how they visualise South Asia a decade hence. It is recognised that the region suffers from several constraints that has made common challenges difficult to address; nevertheless, there is an optimism that the region will move forward steadily albeit slowly, to evolve a common agenda, and shape a regional identity that would form the bedrock of any cooperative endeavour.
Bangladesh, Bhutan, India and Nepal (BBIN) are home to 21 per cent of the world’s population. With projected economic growth in the BBIN countries, a consequent increase in the demand for electricity and heavy dependence on fossil fuels are expected despite the pitch for renewable energy. The region also faces unprecedented climate change, particularly in the Hindu Kush Himalaya, the cradle of major sub-continental rivers, and where melting glaciers, unpredictable weather conditions, and rainfall patterns are affecting the life of millions and instigating frequent natural disasters. Since 2014, India has tried to maximise sub-regional interaction with the aim of promoting cooperation in the economic, social, cultural and scientific fields. This has opened new thinking and opportunities, complementing the pace of globalisation and liberalisation. The fear, of course, is that this approach can easily dissipate in the face of security complexities and political difficulties.
The climate-water-energy nexus is now a familiar concept in the resource management debate requiring long-sighted approaches that help avoid maladaptive pathways and, as a tool, to anticipate the tilt and balance of the nexus resources and the nature of their interactions. The nexus as a policy approach brings together the concept of ‘security and sustainability’. However, the framing of the nexus around a scarcity crisis narrative often pushes states towards control and possessiveness of the resources rather than driving them towards stability and durability solutions. Beyond this framework, a more nuanced political–economy understanding of the BBIN sub-region is essential.
Hydropower cooperation between India and Bhutan should not only help achieve the larger aspirations of the Bhutanese people for peace, prosperity and happiness but also further strengthen bilateral bonds.
The two Himalayan states—Nepal and Bhutan—adopted a new political system in 2008. Nepal upgraded the existing multiparty system by excluding the monarchy. Therefore, Nepal had Constituent Assembly elections in May 2008.
