{"id":26306,"date":"2016-05-02T11:03:01","date_gmt":"2016-05-02T01:03:01","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/?p=26306"},"modified":"2016-05-02T11:32:11","modified_gmt":"2016-05-02T01:32:11","slug":"modis-drive-to-connect-india-with-the-world","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/modis-drive-to-connect-india-with-the-world\/","title":{"rendered":"Modi\u2019s drive to connect India with the world"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"As Narendra Modi shifts Indian foreign policy from<\/span> looking to acting<\/span><\/a>\u2014from passive to active\u2014he\u2019s also counting on an infrastructure push to better connect India at home and with its region. India\u2019s connectivity drive includes projects to build domestic<\/span> roads, railways, bridges and ports<\/span><\/a>, and to build economic corridors to the benefit of its neighbours and neighbourhood. Modi\u2019s efforts come with a range of complications, from sourcing the right human capital and finding the funds, through to managing strategic imperatives which are always complex and often competing. To jump over these hurdles, New Delhi\u2019s actively exploring infrastructure opportunities with partners both old and new.<\/span><\/p>\n

While connectivity across India\u2019s sub-continental landmass has developed over the years, the country has long ignored the development of its waterways, ports and border areas. Connectivity between India\u2019s main cities, north-eastern border areas and its Andaman and Nicobar Islands (ANI) remains woefully underdeveloped. A lack of interest, the distance from India\u2019s central regions, comparatively tougher terrain and vast cultural chasms have all contributed to India\u2019s negligence. But while the previous government saw little incentive to improve connectivity in and between these regions, Modi sees enormous opportunities\u2014and is acting to realise the benefits.<\/span><\/p>\n

Strong intra-India connections to its north-eastern states would open the door to greater interaction with Southeast Asia, boosting people to people ties, tourism and trade. The<\/span> trilateral highway<\/span><\/a> connecting India with Myanmar, Thailand and the rest of Southeast Asia addresses this gap. India is also slowly but steadily developing networks in the ANI, known as India\u2019s \u2018unsinkable carrier\u2019 in the Bay of Bengal. The government now has a plan in place to transform the islands into a \u2018<\/span>maritime hub<\/span><\/a>\u2019, complete with shipping and port infrastructure.<\/span><\/p>\n

India\u2019s connectivity drive in the northeast and the ANI is complicated by a range of strategic factors. China claims the Indian border state of Arunachal Pradesh in the northeast, a territorial dispute which led to the 1962 Sino-Indian war. Such a contested environment has long stymied investment. The ANI is of great strategic importance to India: it\u2019s<\/span> at the doorstep of Myanmar, Malaysia and Indonesia<\/span><\/a>, and is home to India\u2019s only<\/span> tri-command service<\/span><\/a>. India\u2019s continuous continental defence mindset meant the ANI\u2019s strategic potential was unrealised.<\/span><\/p>\n

New Delhi understands that connectivity won\u2019t happen without capital. While India has been keen to cash in on opportunities like the AIIB, it\u2019s been reluctant to open its disputed border regions up to Chinese investment or even presence. That\u2019s where India\u2019s blossoming friendship with Japan is coming to the fore.<\/span><\/p>\n

Modi has welcomed Japan\u2019s eagerness to invest in<\/span> infrastructure projects in the northeast<\/span><\/a>. Japan continues to participate in tenders to improve India\u2019s railways. Upon signing a<\/span> $15 billion deal<\/span><\/a> to build the high-speed Mumbai\u2013Ahmedabad railway, Modi claimed that, \u2018No friend will matter more in realizing India\u2019s economic dreams than Japan\u2019. Further, the two countries recently announced joint infrastructure projects in the<\/span> ANI<\/span><\/a>. Japanese corporates are on board, too, recently ranking India the \u2018<\/span>most favoured destination for investment<\/span><\/a>\u2019. While Japan\u2019s infrastructure drive is no match for China\u2019s One Belt One Road initiative,<\/span> strategic trust<\/span><\/a> counts for a lot\u2014India has more of it with Japan than exists in the Sino-Indian relationship.<\/span><\/p>\n

India\u2019s infrastructure drive also extends to maritime connectivity and port development, but here too India\u2019s concerns about China come to bear. New Delhi is suspicious of the strategic implications of China\u2019s Maritime Silk Road, which brings Beijing closer toward India\u2019s maritime boundary at a time when New Delhi\u2019s eager to play a greater security role in the region. Even though Modi is keen to foster better economic ties with Beijing, New Delhi is well aware of the increasing strategic competition in the Indian Ocean region.<\/span><\/p>\n

But Modi is looking beyond Beijing. During his address to the inaugural<\/span> Maritime India summit<\/span><\/a> in April this year, Modi emphasised India\u2019s maritime heritage and the importance of strengthening the nation\u2019s maritime capabilities and infrastructure. He concluded his enthusiastic speech with a call for greater engagement: \u2018This is the right time to come to India; it is even better to come through the sea route.\u2019 Modi wants new partners who can invest in India\u2019s maritime sector, focusing on ship building and boosting existing port capacities.<\/span><\/p>\n

In pursuing active connectivity diplomacy, Modi is hoping to extend India\u2019s success in collaborating with new and old international partners\u2014relationships that he hopes to expand regionally over the coming years. Modi wants India to play a responsible and credible leadership role in the sub-continent and beyond. Connectivity projects in the region may well become a critical part of India\u2019s soft power diplomacy.<\/span><\/p>\n

The Indian Prime Minister\u2019s new outlook, be it through the domestic or regional connectivity sphere or through the maritime domain, demands greater international engagement from a country which has functioned more or less in isolation for far too long. Delhi\u2019s engagement at the global level is seen by some to be a shift in India\u2019s non-alignment policy. While that\u2019s true to a point, in reality the<\/span> shift<\/span><\/a> only represents the fresh outlook that\u2019s necessary for India to play a more active role in shaping the region\u2019s security architecture. Strategic engagement isn\u2019t the same as strategic alignment, and New Delhi must be able to draw this distinction as it steps up connectivity collaboration with partners around the globe over the coming years.<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

As Narendra Modi shifts Indian foreign policy from looking to acting\u2014from passive to active\u2014he\u2019s also counting on an infrastructure push to better connect India at home and with its region. India\u2019s connectivity drive includes projects …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":379,"featured_media":26307,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mi_skip_tracking":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[1063,52,69,475,135,1055,25],"class_list":["post-26306","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-general","tag-bay-of-bengal","tag-china","tag-india","tag-infrastructure","tag-japan","tag-narendra-modi","tag-southeast-asia"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nModi\u2019s drive to connect India with the world | The Strategist<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/modis-drive-to-connect-india-with-the-world\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Modi\u2019s drive to connect India with the world | The Strategist\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"As Narendra Modi shifts Indian foreign policy from looking to acting\u2014from passive to active\u2014he\u2019s also counting on an infrastructure push to better connect India at home and with its region. India\u2019s connectivity drive includes projects ...\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/modis-drive-to-connect-india-with-the-world\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"The Strategist\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/ASPI.org\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2016-05-02T01:03:01+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2016-05-02T01:32:11+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/05\/13993615485_3798f066f7_z.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"630\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"350\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Darshana Baruah\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@ASPI_org\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@ASPI_org\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Darshana Baruah\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"5 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/\",\"name\":\"The Strategist\",\"description\":\"ASPI's analysis and commentary site\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":\"required name=search_term_string\"}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-AU\"},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-AU\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/modis-drive-to-connect-india-with-the-world\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/05\/13993615485_3798f066f7_z.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/05\/13993615485_3798f066f7_z.jpg\",\"width\":630,\"height\":350},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/modis-drive-to-connect-india-with-the-world\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/modis-drive-to-connect-india-with-the-world\/\",\"name\":\"Modi\u2019s drive to connect India with the world | The Strategist\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/modis-drive-to-connect-india-with-the-world\/#primaryimage\"},\"datePublished\":\"2016-05-02T01:03:01+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2016-05-02T01:32:11+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/#\/schema\/person\/105ba72d0447826d803fe2f590ffb6fc\"},\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/modis-drive-to-connect-india-with-the-world\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-AU\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/modis-drive-to-connect-india-with-the-world\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/modis-drive-to-connect-india-with-the-world\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Modi\u2019s drive to connect India with the world\"}]},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/#\/schema\/person\/105ba72d0447826d803fe2f590ffb6fc\",\"name\":\"Darshana Baruah\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-AU\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/99b7cfaf41d513aa36976398b9e71e53?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/99b7cfaf41d513aa36976398b9e71e53?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Darshana Baruah\"},\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/author\/darshana-baruah\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Modi\u2019s drive to connect India with the world | The Strategist","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/modis-drive-to-connect-india-with-the-world\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Modi\u2019s drive to connect India with the world | The Strategist","og_description":"As Narendra Modi shifts Indian foreign policy from looking to acting\u2014from passive to active\u2014he\u2019s also counting on an infrastructure push to better connect India at home and with its region. India\u2019s connectivity drive includes projects ...","og_url":"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/modis-drive-to-connect-india-with-the-world\/","og_site_name":"The Strategist","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/ASPI.org","article_published_time":"2016-05-02T01:03:01+00:00","article_modified_time":"2016-05-02T01:32:11+00:00","og_image":[{"width":630,"height":350,"url":"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/05\/13993615485_3798f066f7_z.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Darshana Baruah","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_creator":"@ASPI_org","twitter_site":"@ASPI_org","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Darshana Baruah","Est. reading time":"5 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/","name":"The Strategist","description":"ASPI's analysis and commentary site","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":"required name=search_term_string"}],"inLanguage":"en-AU"},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-AU","@id":"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/modis-drive-to-connect-india-with-the-world\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/05\/13993615485_3798f066f7_z.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/05\/13993615485_3798f066f7_z.jpg","width":630,"height":350},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/modis-drive-to-connect-india-with-the-world\/","url":"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/modis-drive-to-connect-india-with-the-world\/","name":"Modi\u2019s drive to connect India with the world | The Strategist","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/modis-drive-to-connect-india-with-the-world\/#primaryimage"},"datePublished":"2016-05-02T01:03:01+00:00","dateModified":"2016-05-02T01:32:11+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/#\/schema\/person\/105ba72d0447826d803fe2f590ffb6fc"},"breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/modis-drive-to-connect-india-with-the-world\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-AU","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/modis-drive-to-connect-india-with-the-world\/"]}]},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/modis-drive-to-connect-india-with-the-world\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Modi\u2019s drive to connect India with the world"}]},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/#\/schema\/person\/105ba72d0447826d803fe2f590ffb6fc","name":"Darshana Baruah","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-AU","@id":"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/99b7cfaf41d513aa36976398b9e71e53?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/99b7cfaf41d513aa36976398b9e71e53?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Darshana Baruah"},"url":"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/author\/darshana-baruah\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/26306"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/379"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=26306"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/26306\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":26315,"href":"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/26306\/revisions\/26315"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/26307"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=26306"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=26306"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=26306"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}