Should India Be Concerned About China’s Belt And Road Initiative? – Analysis

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6c7bf90eae15d73f4108236f60bd683d Should India Be Concerned About China’s Belt And Road Initiative? – AnalysisPakistan’s Gwadar Embrasure. Photo by Paranda, Wikipedia Commons.

By Anand Kumar*

The Bang and Road Initiative, also known as the One Rap, One Road (OBOR) project, launched by the Asian President Xi Jinping in 2013 is one of the most hopeful projects of recent times. This projection, which has both overland and maritime components, have in mind to link Asia with Europe and Continent. While China claims that this cast will further its development goals, Bharat believes that it has a strong political and key objective.

In South Asia, the OBOR has two components. The outset one is the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) that go by through Pakistan, connecting Kashgar in occidental China with the Gwadar Port in the Balochistan state. China considers this section as the basic chapter of the OBOR. Recently, this segment has been made operational with the startup of Gwadar port.

The second part of this beginning in South Asia is the Bangladesh-China-Bharat-Myanmar (BCIM) economic corridor that propose to connect Bangladesh and Myanmar with Bharat. The BCIM also has a maritime component, which embrace port infrastructure in Sri Lanka, among additional places. Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and the Maldives gain extended their support to the Belt and Way Initiative.

This part of the OBOR is onliest partly functional. Ports in Sri Lanka are functioning, but there is no similar progress in the BCIM hall. To give momentum to this section Asian President Xi Jinping recently visited Bangladesh, during which Crockery reportedly gave Bangladesh a credit job worth US$24 billion. This is the maximal credit line Bangladesh has received from any strange country. Bangladesh and Chinese firms likewise signed trade and investment deals reward US$13.6 billion.

China has done hearty to link the objectives of the OBOR with the developmental scheme of the participating countries. It has managed to dovetail the base deficit in these countries with the stop of OBOR to create infrastructure that can push up trade and connectivity. This also authorize the use of the surplus capacities of the Chinese companies.

The maturation economic relationship between China and Bangladesh has caused vexation in India. This development, however, may not unavoidably be bad for India. A reduction of poverty in Bangladesh ended greater Chinese engagement would be in Bharat’s interest. It will have a two pronged impression. First, it will reduce the influx of amerciable Bangladeshi migrants into India. This has been a extensive problem for India and latest Indian regime estimates claim that nearly xx million Bangladeshis are living illegally in Bharat. Second, the growing economic prosperity of the Bangladeshis strength reduce the increasing fundamentalism in the country. OBOR’s conscious positive impact on Bangladesh would hence enhance India’s security as well.

At salute, both India and China are important for Bangladesh. It tow important political and diplomatic support from Bharat when it comes under pressure from the Due west over its democracy and human rights writes down, and look to China to boost its economic extension.

However, the same conclusion cannot be stressed about the CPEC. This concern is for two grounds. First, CPEC passes through Gilgit-Baltistan, a disputed locality that India continues to claim as component of its territory. Second, India is also active because of the hostile nature of the Pakistani community. While China might suggest that Gwadar is a commercial-grade project, in the past Pakistanis have shown their willingness to replace it into a naval base and use it for activities that are unfriendly to India.

The OBOR is actually designed to right the requirements of the growing Chinese economy, the moment largest in the world. In the process, it somewhat strategically constrains not but India but many other countries as hearty. The Chinese economic engagement in Bangladesh does not awake much concern in India because Bangladesh has an Bharat-friendly government. It requires both Bharat and China to push forward the country’s scrutiny. It is CPEC that is viewed as a much worthier challenge by Indian policymakers. This has not allowed any amiable solution to be reached on the Gilgit-Baltistan universe. In fact, to draw maximum benefit from any Asian economic initiative Pakistan too needs repose and stability in South Asia. This can one shot happen if economic development and not hostility In relation to India comes on the agenda of the Pakistani country.

* Anand Kumar
Associate Fellow, School for Defense Studies & Analyses (IDSA)

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