India’s Neighbourhood: Challenges in the Next Two Decades | Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses

The chapters in the book take a prospective look at India's neighbourhood, as it may evolve by 2030. They underline the challenges that confront Indian policymakers, the opportunities that are likely to emerge, and the manner in which they should frame foreign and security policies for India, to maximise the gains and minimise the losses.
The key findings that emerge from this volume are: the geopolitical situation in the neighbourhood is likely to change significantly due to uncertainties in the global economy, chronic instability in the Af-Pak region, increasing salience of external factors in regional politics, continuing anti-India sentiments in some of the countries, demographic pressures, growth in illegal migration, and adverse consequences of climate change. However, there are also signs of greater desire for economic integration, strengthening of democratic institutions in some countries, and emphasis on regional cooperation. While India may face increasing security challenges due to instability in certain countries, there will be an opportunity for it to better integrate its economy with the region.
The contributors to the volume argue that in order to deal with the uncertainties in an effective manner, India has to fine-tune its diplomatic apparatus to proactively deal with emerging realities in the neighbourhood; systematically pursue policies for inclusive and equitable economic growth at home; build networks of interdependence with all neighbouring countries; significantly improve the quality of the country’s governance; take measures to deal with internal security situation effectively; build domestic consensus on key issues affecting India’s neighbourhood policy; sustain economic growth; adopt cooperative security approaches to deal with regional issues; and at the same time develop appropriate and robust defence capabilities to meet complex security challenges it is going to face in future.

Contents

Foreword
About the Contributors
List of Abbreviations
List of Tables, Figures, Maps
Introduction
1. Afghanistan: Likely Scenarios and India’s Options
-- Vishal Chandra
2. Bangladesh: Illegal Migration and Challenges for India
-- Sreeradha Datta
3. Bhutan: India-Bhutan Relations in the Next Two Decades
-- Medha Bisht
4. China: Managing India-China Relations
-- Prashant Kumar Singh and Rumel Dahiya
5. Maldives: Harmonising Efforts to Mitigate Adverse Impacts of Climate Change and Achieve Growth
-- Anand Kumar
6. Myanmar: The Need for Infrastructure Integration
-- Udai Bhanu Singh and Shruti Pandalai
7. Nepal: Issues and Concerns in India-Nepal Relations
-- Nihar Nayak
8. Pakistan: Chronic Instability and India’s Options
-- Ashok K Behuria and Sushant Sareen
9. Sri Lanka: Challenges and Opportunities for India
-- Smruti S Pattanaik
Conclusion
Index