South Asia remains one of the least integrated regions in the world despite geographical proximity and complementary economic structures. Greater regional trade, improved transport connectivity, cross-border electricity markets, digital payment systems and investment partnerships could substantially reduce external vulnerabilities.
Between 2004 and 2023, India produced roughly five million graduates every year, but graduate employment increased by only around 2.8 million annually. Even fewer obtained salaried employment. Millions are either unemployed or working below their qualifications or in the waiting room for the elusive government job.
Policy instability during the 2015-2024 likely pushed back Sri Lanka’s path towards becoming South Asia’s first High-Income Country. The 2022 financial crisis would never have happened as stable growth during the first half of 2015–2024 would have built enough buffer to weather impact of the Covid pandemic
China’s Belt and Road Initiative - which funded Sri Lanka’s Hambantota Port through loans resulting in a 99-year lease to Chinese State-owned enterprise in 2017 due to Colombo’s struggle to service said loans - follows the same expansionary script.
Xiaomi India is a trader and distributor of mobile phones in India under the brand name MI. It procures the completely manufactured mobile sets and other products from the manufacturers in India. "It has not availed any service from the three foreign-based entities to whom such amounts have been transferred," the ED said.
But there was no clarity on what China meant by allowing the return of "some" Indian students, when over 23,000 Indian students, mostly studying medicine in Chinese colleges, are stuck in India after they returned home as the coronavirus broke out in China in December 2019
India's first prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru "made a blunder" when he recognised China's claim over Tibet but he did what he thought was best for his country, said Penpa Tsering, the president of the Tibetan government in exile, in Washington
“Any collaboration with any NGO/Foundation is subject to Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act (FCRA). Hence, all Universities/Institutions having collaboration with Confucius Institutes/Hanban/CLEC or planning to collaborate to set up Confucius Institutes (CIs) or any other joint venture in any other name will be required to seek prior clearance under FCRA,” reads the communication
In preserving its strategy of breaking the containment policy, Moscow, Tehran, Islamabad, Taipei and Pyongyang remain at the forefront. All five will be used as a bargaining tool with Washington and the containing squad in exerting greater influence and say on the pull-push tussle in the Indo-Pacific domain, writes Collins Chong Yew Keat for South Asia Monitor
The attack, which came hours before Sharif departed for his first foreign trip to Saudi Arabia, raised concerns both for Pakistan and China amid an increasingly deteriorating security environment in the wake of a spree of deadly attacks by the Pakistan Taliban (TTP), Baloch groups, and the ISIS
As China is the biggest trading partner of India as well as Russia, its yuan has significant economic and trade potential to mediate the rupee-ruble rate, writes S. Majumder for South Asia Monitor
The country will need bridge financing of around $3 billion till the IMF finalizes its aid package. Talks are already underway with India and China for raising the money. Significantly, Bangladesh is expected to postpone the repayment of around the $450 million currency swap facility that it had extended to Sri Lanka
Significantly, almost 37 percent of the power projects built under the CPEC remain non-functional as the payments to Chinese contractors remain stalled, the new cabinet noted in the first meeting held this week on the CPEC
The report claimed that one of the load dispatch centres was at the crosshairs of a hacking group called RedEcho which allegedly shares ‘overlaps’ with a hacking group that the United States has tied to the Chinese government.
Placing Quad in the Indo-Pacific seems critical to tackle the Chinese aggressive stance in the region
"China-India border issue is a matter between China and India," China Military Online quoted Wu as saying
The maritime cooperation between India and France has witnessed a major expansion in the last few years
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi wrapped up his-three day Nepal visit—his first under the Deuba government—with both countries issuing separate accounts of their meetings marked by notable diversions
The upcoming meeting in Beijing will be the third such meeting of foreign ministers of regional countries where members are expected to discuss a coherent regional response to address the issue of Afghanistan
