Engagement and Development : India\'s Northeast and Neighbouring Countries

Contents: Preface. Introduction/C. Joshua Thomas. I. Northeastern region and the regional organisations: 1. Security, engagement and development: development interest of India\'s Northeast and the art of conduct on India\'s relations with neighbouring countries/Gurudas Das. 2. Unfinished business in Northeast/B.G. Verghese. 3. The paradox of development/Sujata Miri. 4. Shortages, ethnic conflicts and economic development in Northeastern India/Walter Fernandes. II. Indo-China and Bhutan relations-implications for Northeastern region: 5. India\'s China policy: implications for the security and development of the Northeastern region/C.V. Ranganathan. 6. Ethnic engagement in Bhutan and its regional consequences/A.C. Sinha. 7. Bhutan and India: partners in progress/P.S. Ghosh. III. Indo-Bangladesh relations-implications for Northeastern region: 8. Bangladesh and the Northeast: facing migration, ending rhetoric, embracing a realistic strategy for change/Sanjoy Hazarika. 9. Ethnicity and security in Assam: a plea for greater Indo-Bangladesh partnership/Samir Kumar Das. 10. Partnership in Indo-Bangladesh economic development: the case of Jainitia Hills in Meghalaya/L.S. Gassah. 11. Indo-Bangladesh relations and its implication for Northeast India/A.N.S. Ahmed. 12. Plight of minorities in Bangladesh with special reference to their exodus to Northeast India and related issues/Bimal Pramanik. IV. Indo-Myanmar relations-implications for Northeastern region: 13. Burma Policy and its impact on India\'s Northeastern region/Subir Bhaumik. 14. Indo-Myanmar relations since 1988: its implications on India\'s Northeast/K. Ibo Singh. 15. Geo-economic and Geo-strategic importance of Myanmar in India\'s \'Look East Policy\'/Udai Bhanu Singh. V. Look-East Policy, security aspects-implications for Northeastern region: 16. Importance of Northeastern region in India\'s Look East Policy/P.D. Shenoy. 17. India\'s Eastern neighbours and insurgency, small and heavy arms proliferation and narcotics in Northeast India/Sajal Nag. 18. Some geo-political aspects concerning internal security in Northeastern India/R. Gopalakrishnan. Index.

"With the paradigm shift from state centralism to interdependence and global cooperation, the Indian state has been sensitized about the geo-economic potential of its Northeastern Region (NER) as its gateway to Southeast Asian countries. India\'s Look East Policy, introduced in the early nineties, is, therefore, aimed at gradual integration of the NER with the thriving market across the borders, and there by, opening up to the emerging opportunities in the Southeast Asia. The NER, because of its geographic location cradled by five Asian countries - Nepal, Bhutan, Tibetan-China, Myanmar and Bangladesh, has natural geo-economic advantages to become the economic bridgehead of South East Asia.

This book earnestly attempts to deepen the understanding of issues that the Northeastern region of India is faced with and calls for accelerating the engagement process with the governments of the neighbouring countries--Bangladesh, Bhutan, China, Myanmar and Nepal--and opening of the borders for trade and people to people contact, which will be beneficial both for India\'s Northeastern region and its neighbouring countries. It seeks wider readership cutting across the academia, policy makers, diplomats and the northeast watchers." (jacket)