{"id":51402,"date":"2019-08-20T19:00:26","date_gmt":"2019-08-20T13:30:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogadmin.forumias.com\/?p=51402"},"modified":"2019-08-20T16:29:40","modified_gmt":"2019-08-20T10:59:40","slug":"7-pm-something-special-on-narendra-modis-bhutan-visit-20th-august-2019","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/7-pm-something-special-on-narendra-modis-bhutan-visit-20th-august-2019\/","title":{"rendered":"7 PM | Something special: On Narendra Modi&#8217;s Bhutan visit | 20th August, 2019"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p><strong>Context: <\/strong>India\nand Bhutan relations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>More in news: <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>Prime Minister of\nIndia, Narendra Modi, made a State Visit to the Kingdom of Bhutan from 17-18\nAugust 2019, at the invitation of the Prime Minister of Bhutan. This was among\nthe first bilateral visits by Prime Minister Modi after assuming office for the\nsecond time in May 2019.<\/li><li>10 Memoranda of\nUnderstanding (MOU)\/Agreement were exchanged during the visit.<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>India-Bhutan\nRelation:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>Diplomatic relations between India and Bhutan were established in 1968 with the appointment of a resident representative of India in Thimphu. <\/li><li>Before this our relations with Bhutan were looked after by our Political Officer in Sikkim. <\/li><li>The basic framework of India- Bhutan bilateral relations was the Treaty of Friendship and Cooperation signed in 1949 between the two countries, which was revised in February 2007.<\/li><li>The India-Bhutan Friendship Treaty not only reflects the contemporary nature of our relationship but also lays the foundation for their future development in the 21st century.<\/li><li>The development cooperation between the two countries can be effectively divided into three significant waves: <ul><li>The first wave (1960s\u20131970s) focused on building the social and physical infrastructure. <\/li><li>The second wave (1980s\u20131990s) saw substantive efforts towards democratisation and decentralisation. <\/li><li>The third wave of the relationship focused on developing hydel projects, which has now expanded into other areas such as information technology, disaster risk management, education and research cooperation.<\/li><\/ul><\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Trade relations:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>The\nIndia-Bhutan Trade and Transit Agreement 1972 established a free-trade regime\nbetween the two countries. <strong><\/strong><\/li><li>The\nAgreement also provides for duty-free transit of Bhutanese exports to third\ncountries. <strong><\/strong><\/li><li>In 2018,\nbilateral trade reached Rs. 9228 Crore. <strong><\/strong><\/li><li>Imports\nfrom India accounted for 84% of Bhutan\u2019s total imports. Bhutan\u2019s exports to\nIndia constituted 78 % of its total exports. <strong><\/strong><\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Security relation:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>Both\ncountries share open border and one of the most peaceful border in the world. <\/li><li>Both\ncountries have conducted joint operations against insurgents. One such example was\nin 2003 to drive out ULFA rebels.<\/li><li>More recently, India\u2019s stand against\nChinese troops on the Doklam plateau.&nbsp;<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Cultural\nand Educational Cooperation:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>India Bhutan foundation was established\nin 2003 for improving people to people cooperation in the areas of culture,\neducation and environment protection<\/li><li>India has provided scholarships for\nBhutanese students studying in Undergraduate and Postgraduate courses in Indian\ninstitutions<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Outcome\nof recent visit:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>The two Prime Ministers\nformally inaugurated the recently completed 720 MW Mangdechhu Hydroelectric\nPlant. The&nbsp;ongoing projects are Punatsangchhu-1, Punatsangchhu-2 and\nKholongchhu Hydroelectric Plants.<\/li><li>Prime Minister launched\nthe facility of use of Indian-issued RuPay cards in Bhutan, which would greatly\nfacilitate Indian travellers to Bhutan by reducing the need to carry cash,\nwhile at the same time boosting the Bhutanese economy and further integrating\nthe economies of both countries.<\/li><li>Inaugurated the Ground\nEarth Station of the South Asian Satellite in Thimphu, which was constructed\nwith the support of the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO).&nbsp;<\/li><li>Both sides agreed to\ncollaborate on the joint development of a small satellite for Bhutan. It was\nalso agreed to develop a geoportal system for Bhutan for natural resources and\ndisaster management, using remote sensing and geo-spatial data.<\/li><li>Prime Minister of India\nalso inaugurated the inter-connection between India\u2019s National Knowledge\nNetwork and Bhutan\u2019s Research and Education Network. Both sides noted that this\nlink-up would create an information highway, encouraging greater interaction\namong the universities and students of both sides.<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Memoranda\nof Understanding (MOU)\/Agreement exchanged during the visit:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>MoU between Department of Information\nTechnology and Telecom of RGoB and Indian Space Research Organisation, on\nestablishment of Satcom Network for the utilization of South Asia Satellite.<\/li><li>MoU for peering arrangement between\nNational Knowledge Network (NKN) and Druk Research and Education Network\n(DrukREN) of Bhutan.<\/li><li>MoU between Aircraft Accident\nInvestigation Bureau (AAIB), India, and Air Accident Investigation Unit (AAIU),\nBhutan, on aircraft accident and incident investigation.<\/li><li>Four MoUs on enhancement of Academic\nExchanges and STEM cooperation between the Royal University of Bhutan, and IITs\nat Kanpur, Delhi and Mumbai and NIT Silchar.<\/li><li>MoU between National Law School of India\nUniversity, Bangalore and JigmeSingyeWangchuck School of Law, Thimphu on\nenhancing relations between the two parties in the areas of legal education and\nresearch.<\/li><li>MoU between Bhutan National Legal\nInstitute and National Judicial Academy, Bhopal, on cooperation in judicial\neducation and mutual exchanges.<\/li><li>Power Purchase Agreement for Mangdechhu\nHydro-electric Project between PTC India Ltd and Druk Green Power Corporation,\nBhutan.<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Areas of\nConcern:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>India\u2019s sudden change in its power\npurchasing policy, rigid rates and refusal to allow Bhutan to join the national\npower grid and trade with third countries like Bangladesh has caused some\nstrains in the relations.<\/li><li>Earlier generations of Bhutanese\nstudents never looked beyond India, but in recent years young Bhutanese have\nshown a preference for education destinations in Australia, Singapore\nand&nbsp;Thailand.&nbsp;<\/li><li>The Motor Vehicles Agreement that was\nsigned in 2015 involving Bangladesh, Bhutan, India and Nepal (BBIN) was blocked\nby Bhutan&#8217;s upper house citing environmental concerns.<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Conclusion:\n<\/strong>India\nand Bhutan have shared a special relationship since 1950s. To keep the good\nrelations intact India will have to remain alert to strategic powers which are\ncourting Bhutan assiduously, as is evident from the high-level visits from\nChina and the U.S. In a world of growing options, it remains in India\u2019s and\nBhutan\u2019s best interests to make each other\u2019s concerns a top priority.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Source: <\/strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.thehindu.com\/opinion\/editorial\/something-special-on-narendra-modis-bhutan-visit\/article29161046.ece\">https:\/\/www.thehindu.com\/opinion\/editorial\/something-special-on-narendra-modis-bhutan-visit\/article29161046.ece<\/a><strong><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Context: India and Bhutan relations. More in news: Prime Minister of India, Narendra Modi, made a State Visit to the Kingdom of Bhutan from 17-18 August 2019, at the invitation of the Prime Minister of Bhutan. This was among the first bilateral visits by Prime Minister Modi after assuming office for the second time in&hellip; <a class=\"more-link\" href=\"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/7-pm-something-special-on-narendra-modis-bhutan-visit-20th-august-2019\/\">Continue reading <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">7 PM | Something special: On Narendra Modi&#8217;s Bhutan visit | 20th August, 2019<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":61,"featured_media":49370,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[130,9],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-51402","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-7-pm","category-public","entry"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/7-PM.png?fit=1000%2C500&ssl=1","views":{"total":0,"cached_at":1700782387,"cached_date":1704795247},"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/51402","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/61"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=51402"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/51402\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/49370"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=51402"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=51402"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=51402"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}