International Relations Class 10

The territorial dispute related to Kalapani and Susta (5:11 PM)

● India and Nepal share 1850 km of open borders with 5 Indian states
(UP, Bihar, Uttarakhand, West Bengal, and Sikkim).
● 98% of the border is well demarcated.
The Kalapani Dispute:
● This dispute is over 35 square kilometers of the triangular region
located on the India-Nepal-China trijunction.
● This region is en route to Kailash Mansarovar Yatra.
● India claims this region to be part of the Pithoragarh district of
Uttarakhand, while Nepal claims it to be part of the Dharchula district.
● Origin of the dispute:
● The disputed origin of the river Kali (Nepal refers to the river as
Mahakali).
● The treaty of Sugauli, 1816 demarcated Nepal’s western borders by
river Kali.
● However, the two countries dispute the origin of the river.
● According to India, the origin of the river Kali lies in spring at Lipulake.
● While Nepal claims the river to originate from Limpiyadhura,
North-West of Lipulake, thus Nepal lays claim to the entire Kalapani
region.
Why in the news recently? (5:18 PM)
● While dealing with political factions of his ruling coalition, Prime
Minister KP Oli whipped up the nationalist sentiments over the
Kalapani area.
● India, following the abrogation of Article 370, reorganized the state of
J&K into two UTs.
 ● And thereby, produced a new political map of India, without any
changes vis-a-vis its international borders.
● However, former PM Oli found a political opportunity in the same and
got the Nepali legislature to endorse through a constitutional
amendment, a new Political map of Nepal, which includes the
Kalapani region as a fingerlike projection into India along with the
Susta region.
● Also, the amendment led to the inclusion of the new map into the
Nepali Emblem which is present on the Nepali letterheads.
● Such a new political map and the emblem did not alter the ground
situation (it all soured the bilateral relations).
The strategic importance of Kalapani: (7:24 PM)
● It is strategically vital since it is located at a height of 20000 feet.
● Since the 1962 War, the Indian military has had a permanent post in
Kalapani.
● It provides a vantage point for the Indian military to observe the
activities of the PLA (People Liberation Army) along the LAC.
● It is presently manned by ITBP forces.
● Such a military observation post has become all the more vital given
the recent border conflict between India and China in Ladakh.
Way forward:
● In the spirit of the Gujral Doctrine, India should recognize Kalapani to
be Nepali territory but on the condition that Nepal permanently leases
it to India.
● This would satisfy the nationalist sentiments in Nepal, without
compromising India’s strategic interest.
Susta Dispute: (5:30 PM)
● Origin of the dispute:
 ● The dispute is traced to the changing river course of river Gandak,
which is referred to as the Narayani river in Nepal.
● When the treaty of Sugauli was signed, Susta was located on the
right bank of the River Gandak.
● Which falls in Nepal.
● But presently, because of changing river courses, it is located on the
left bank of the river, which is part of India.
Way forward:
● The existing bilateral treaties have not taken into consideration the
shifting river courses of the Himalayan rivers.
● India and Nepal should resolve it by taking into consideration all the
shared environmental characteristics.
China in Nepal: (5:35 PM)
● China provides aid to Nepal for the development of roads, etc.
● China and Nepal have signed the Cross Himalayan Connectivity
Network.
● They are also developing a rail network between Kathmandu and
Kerang, Tibet.
● The 2nd largest trade partner of Nepal is China. China has pledged
the highest FDI to Nepal.
● China has given access to seaports to Nepal.
Hope for India:
● Seaport access given by China is 3500 km.
● Geographical limitations in China-Nepal relations.
● Hence, India is pursuing increased connectivity with Nepal.
● India can increase private investment and FDI in Nepal.
India-Bangladesh Relations: (6:18 PM)
● Important phases in India-Bangladesh relations.
 ● Sonali Adhyaay (The Golden Chapter).
● We share a bond over strategic ties.
● Model Neighborliness.
● Bilateral Issues (River water sharing, illegal migration).
Importance of Bangladesh to India: (6:22 PM)
● The geopolitical importance of Bangladesh:
● A strategic location as a wedge between the North-Eastern states
and the rest of India.
● The North-Eastern states are landlocked, and they have shorter
routes to the sea through Bangladesh.
● Therefore, permanent transit rights through Bangladesh will not only
help India overcome its Chicken’s Neck dilemma but also spur
socio-economic developments in North Eastern India.
● Bridge to Southeast Asia:
● Bangladesh is a natural pillar of India’s Act East policy.
● Dhaka’s support in sub-regional initiatives such as BBIN
(Bangladesh, Bhutan, India Nepal) and BIMSTEC (Bay of Bengal
Initiative for Multisectoral, Technical, and Economic Cooperation) is
important to complement New Delhi’s outreach to South-East Asia.
● Bangladesh is an important transit corridor to bring Natural Gas from
Myanmar.
● It is important to secure important SLOCs (Sea Lines of
Communications), especially in the South-Eastern Indian Ocean.
Evolution or Phases in India-Bangladesh Relation: (6:34 PM)
● 1971 to 1975:
● It is a good phase of the bilateral relationship.
● It was the time Majibur Rehman was the president of Bangladesh.
● And since India cooperated with Mukti-Bahini.
● 1972: Treaty of Friendship and Cooperation with Bangladesh.
● It was a phase of military rule in Bangladesh.
● Since the military officers had been repatriated from the Pakistani
Army, they inherited an anti-India attitude.
● Also, the military rule emphasized on the Islamic identity of
Bangladesh, consequently Bangladesh found itself closer to Islamic
Pakistan.
● During this period, Bangladesh Constitution was amended to
incorporate Islam as the state religion.
● The military pursued a foreign policy, principally governed by the
strategy of distancing itself from India.
● 1991-onwards:
● Marks the return of democracy to Bangladesh.
● Bangladesh Nationalist Party, BNP came into prominence.
● India-Bangladesh signed the Ganga water sharing treaty.
● From 2009 onwards, Bangladesh had 3 consecutive governments of
the Awami League led by Sheik Hasina.
● This impact has led to the Golden Chapter in bilateral ties.
● Unlike China-Bangladesh relations, despite India’s key role in the
creation of independent Bangladesh, there exists no bipartisan
consensus vis-a-vis India-Bangladesh relations in Bangladesh.
● PM Sheik Hasina has hailed India-Bangladesh relations as ‘Model
Good Neighborliness’.
● The reason is multi-faceted relations such that India and Bangladesh
cooperate in conventional (health, environment, people-to-people
relations), and non-conventional sectors (peaceful use of nuclear
energy, cyber security, etc.)
 ● External affairs minister S Jaishankar commented that very few
countries share such close fraternal ties.
Land Boundary Agreement: 7:16 PM
● It settled the 6.5 km of un-demarcated regions.
● Addressed the issue of adverse possessions.
● This issue arises because of changing river courses.
● Exchange of enclaves between the two countries.
● It has been a pending issue since 1974.
● It could be operationalized following the 100th CAA when the
Land-Boundary agreement was signed in 2015.
● In 2014, the maritime borders between the two countries were
settled.
● India did not contest the ruling of the Permanent Court of Arbitration
in favor of Bangladesh, though India lost claims on around 19500
sq-km of maritime area in the Bay of Bengal.
● Once Sheik Hasina's government came into power, it shut down the
camps of various Indian insurgent groups in Bangladesh.
● She extradited several leaders and members of the North-Eastern
insurgent groups, and sent clear signals that she would not allow
misuse of Bangladeshi soil against India’s interest.
● Such steps by her government built bilateral trust and catalyzed
India-Bangladesh relations.
● Bangladesh is India’s largest trade partner in South Asia with a
bilateral trade of around 10 billion dollars annually and a near
equivalent amount of informal trade.
● India Bangladesh development cooperation is valued at around 10
billion USD consisting of grants and lines of credit.
● Connectivity between the two countries has been prioritized.
● A direct bus service between Agartala and Kolkata via Bangladesh
has been launched, reducing the distance of travel to 500 km against
1650 km if it were to pass through Chicken’s Neck Corridor.
● Passenger and freight railway services have been given a boost.
● Recently, Maitri Setu, a 1.9 km long bridge connecting Sabroom in
Tripura to Ramgarh in Bangladesh was inaugurated.
● Bangladesh has allowed the use of its Mongla and Chittoram Ports
for the shipment of goods to and from India.
● This has allowed the land-locked North Eastern Region (NER) to
access the sea.
● Bangladesh seeks to join India-Myanmar-Thailand trilateral highway
to improve its connectivity to South-East Asia and has pushed for the
operationalization of the BBIN Motor Vehicle Agreement.
● Defense Cooperation between India and Bangladesh has made
significant progress. They seek to institutionalize their defense
cooperation. India has extended 500 million dollars of Line of Credit
for the purchase of defense equipment from India.
● Bangladesh is importing 1600 MWs of power from India.
● Over 3600 MWs of power projects are under implementation by
Indian companies in Bangladesh.
● Bangladesh has allowed the use of drinking water from the Feni river
to meet the requirement of Sabroom town in Tripura.
● New areas of cooperation:
● India, Bangladesh, and Russia have entered into a tripartite
agreement on the development of the Rooppur Nuclear Power plant
in Bangladesh.
● Cyberspace:
 ● Bangladesh has provided cyber connectivity between the
international gateway at Cox Bazar to Agartala.
● It would lead to faster internet connectivity in the Indian North-Eastern
States.
● The cost of the project is to be borne by the Government of India.
Border Haats: (7:47 PM)
● Border markets have increased in numbers, these markets were
started in 2011 to help the border people exchange limited goods for
daily use across the border.
● This is a people-oriented initiative and helps to provide additional
livelihood opportunities in the remote border areas.
● The Sheik Hasina government, occupying Dhaka for the third
consecutive term, has provided the two countries the opportunity to
cement their bilateral relations.
● In this regard, the two countries have come out with a
‘forward-looking roadmap’ with the aim to make the progress
achieved in the bilateral relations irreversible.
Bilateral Issues: (7:54 PM)
● Bangladesh:
● River water sharing.
● Adverse balance of trade.
● Rohingya issue.
● Issue of border killings.
● India:
● Illegal migration.
● Radicalization of Bangladesh society.
● China in Bangladesh.