PYQ Vault · Paper 2 · South Asia: Regionalism, SAARC & BIMSTEC
Discuss the ways and means to realise greater economic co-operation among the Member States of South Asia.
How the answer moves
The flow snapshot — the routes in, the body, the counter-view and the routes out.
Flow snapshot — how the answer moves
Intro routes
RI 5% against ASEAN’s 25% — gap is one of delivery, not agreements —> spine: cut the cost of crossing borders k2 tariffs already cut, trade did not follow — wrong instrument -— shift the target from tariffs to trade costs
Body flow
SAFTA’s tariff-only design, NTBs untouched -> non-tariff costs ~114% vs ASEAN’s 76% —> Kathuria: $23bn actual / $67bn potential ~> standards + border infrastructure over tariff cuts Menon: FTA neither necessary nor sufficient —> facilitation + professional secretariat — therefore project-based, sub-regional — energy as proof: Nepal — Bangladesh via Indian grid, 2024, first trilateral transaction —> BBIN / BIMSTEC as carriers — India’s non- reciprocal concessions
Counter-view
Batra: conflict itself depresses trade — disputed border becomes a barrier — India-Pakistan overrides the rest + economics alone cannot deliver
Conclusion routes
R1 visas + “SAARC Minus’ flexibility alongside — built upward from projects, not downward from summits Rk2 the cheapest route runs through border costs, not summit declarations — deliver where politics already allows
Model answer
Handwritten, in the form it would be written in the examination hall.
