India and Nepal, two democratic nations that are part of the larger Hindu civilisation and whose people are bound together by centuries-old cultural ties, must stick together and jointly fight the challenges they face
Now that India and Nepal have removed the major roadblocks at the Ruxal-Birgunjcheckpost, the myth that the people of Nepal and India are enemies must be demolished. Nepal has a demographic profile that is younger than India’s 50 per cent of the population of Nepal is below 25 years of age group. This generation of Nepalese is literate, exposed to technology, inspired and forward looking. Nepal’s energy industry has a huge potential to develop through hydropower and other non-conventional sources. Industries can be set up all along the India-Nepal border which will generate jobs and help the service industry grow. Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s initiative to start long-pending projects, widen the roads for trade and develop multi-model trade hubs will give a major boost to Nepal’s trade and industry. India should also work on developing rail connectivity with Nepal to boost development. Nepal, India, Bhutan and Bangladesh account for six per cent of the gross domestic product of the world and about 18 per cent of the global population. The landmark Bangladesh, Bhutan, India and Nepal motor vehicle agreement, signed on June 15, 2015, will provide great opportunities for synergistic economic gain. An India-Nepal trade and industry corridor, with connectivity to Myanmar and the countries of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, has enormous potential. India has a 1,751km border with Nepal and the development of roads between the two countries will lead to the promotion of trade and tourism. This will create opportunities for the youth of Nepal and India. India and Nepal should also develop a joint skill development mission to help Nepali youth. Similarly, an India-Nepal start-up initiative, setting up entrepreneurship collaboration and start-up incubation centres, will boost growth and employment. Nepal and India should jointly work towards setting up of a management institute in Nepal and a Nepalese institute of technology in India. India can also help Nepal with it’s expertise of organic farming in Sikkim. It is said that the history of Nepal is the history of its Army. The Nepal Army is known for its discipline and professionalism. Its contribution towards the building the modern day Nepal is enormous. The Nepal Army, along with the Indian Army, saved many lives in the aftermath of the 2014 earthquake. There were many hindrances towards the emergence of the Nepal-India partnership, as India’s Nehruvian political leaders for the past six decades, failed to give a strategic direction to this bilateral. An ineffective Indian bureaucracy has never been able to realise the true potential of the great people of Nepal. A section of the Indian media lacks the depth of knowledge and understanding of our common vedic culture. Insensitive reporting by such media persons adds to the complications.
The growth of the Islamic State and radical Islam has dangerous implications for both India and Nepal, according to global security experts. Illegal activities like human trafficking, drugs trafficking, arms smuggling and the fake currency racket are endangering Nepal’s economy. Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence agency aims to destabilise the region by spreading terror networks and organised crime. The increased focus of the Islamic State, as brought to light by the arrest of 27 Bangladeshi jihadis in Singapore, exposes the alliance of the Islamic State, the ISI and Bangladesh’s Jamaat-e-Islami. The demand by Muslims in Nepal for special status and the re-arming of Maoist factions pose a threat to Nepal. According to Western intelligence, Islamic State-ISI network has recruited Muslims from Nepal and is now training them in camps in West Asia and Afghanistan. The increase in Gulf- funded madarssas in Nepal, the spread of Saudi-backed Wahhabi radical networks, and the rise of foreign-funded institutions and NGOs pose a challenge to Nepali sovereignty. Such elements want a black economy in Nepal that will stall development and investment in the country and create social unrest. India and Nepal need to take note of the changing geo-political situation across Asia. Particularly the rise of the Islamic State and the increased military aggression of China and its ally North Korea has ramifications for South and South East Asia. Chinese companies supplied oil to Nepal at double the rate of what Indian company had quoted. Thus, we can’t expect China or any other nation to mitigate the suffering of our own people. As pointed out by many leaders in Nepal, enforcing the new Constitution with secular, republican character was against the majority public opinion of Nepalese who favoured the preservation of Nepal’s Hindu character. According to a Pew Research Centre poll, which assessed the aspirations of the Nepali people, an overwhelming majority want Nepal to be a Hindu state. However, the Maoists and a section of the international lobby, which were uncomfortable with the Hindu character of Nepal and the possibilities of a democracy with a constitutional monarchy, hurried the promulgation of the new Constitution. Notably, the rule of the Ranas was not without achievement. Till the abolition of constitutional monarchy in 2008, the people in Nepal could always fall back upon the Palace in times of crisis. Now, the absence of this age-old institution is felt across Nepal. Nepal, the land of the brave Gurkhas and also the birthplace of Lord Buddha, has a unique place in our history and a special place in our hearts. Nepal is the holy place for all Hindus and Buddhists, as Mecca is for Muslims and Jerusalem for Jews and Christians Congress president Sonia Gandhi’s sympathy for the Maoist in Nepal had translated into the previous Left-wing UPA Government’s unconditional support for the Maoist, which helped give the latter a strong hand to decide the political agenda of Nepal. We also need to completely free the Nepal-India relationship from the clutches of the lobby at Jawaharlal Nehru University. We need to engage our youth, military, businesses and technocrats to develop a strategic relationship. The people of Nepal and India must not be hostage to an ideological dogma that’s long been dead in the rest of the world. We need to get rid of ideology that hinders economic growth and diverts our attention from the emerging economic and security challenges. The Indian Army and the Nepalese Army have close and historic relations with each other, and the Indian Prime Minister is committed to building a strategic Nepal-India partnership.
India and Nepal are two nations but one people. We should remember the words of the great king Prithvi Narayan Shah in DivyaUpadesh, and what Chanakya taught us. Nepal and India today are like a yam between two stones West Asia’s wahhabi radicalism and China’s military aggressiveness. Nepal and India are both democracies, and both are part of Hindu civilisation. Both countries must fight all challenges with unity and determination. The writer is the author of Leadership Excellence Principles My Father Followed. He specialises in human resource This article was first published in The Pioneer on February 16, 2016. The views expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect position of Forum for Integrated National Security.
