Symposium

on
India-China Relations: Recent Developments
28 -29 December, 2015
The Modi government has accorded greater priority to improve relations with China notwithstanding
the fact that the long pending border disputes are yet to be settled. Prime Minister Modis objective is
that Sino-Indian collaboration will help in contributing to Indias economic ambition of achieving rapid
growth rate. Such expectations seem to override the other bilateral irritants with China which include
frequent border clashes and the strategy of containing India strategically in Indian Ocean. Accordingly,
India joined China sponsored multilateral institutions like the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank
(AIIB) as a founding member and show interest in BCIM economic corridor.
However, India has reservations on Chinas Maritime Silk Road and China Pakistan Economic
Corridor, the latter passing through Indian territory in POK. The Modi government desires to go with
Indias maritime scheme called Mousam instead of joining Chinas Belt and Road project. Some
scholars hold the view India should join Chinas MSR project to gain the economic benefits from it.
Road and Belt Initiatives
Chinese President Xi Jinping revived and accelerated the Road and Belt projects primarily to boost the
countrys manufacturing sector and improve its trade relations with Southeast Asian neighbours. Xi
mooted these mega projects during his visit to Kazakhstan in 2013. Since then several countries in the
Eurasian Belt evinced interest in them. However, India has so far not made up its mind and cited lack of
clarity as the reason for hesitation. China has been financing many projects under the Silk Road scheme
in interested countries like Pakistan and others.
China is also subtly involving in easing India Pakistan tensions within the multilateral framework of
the SCO. Chinese scholars recognize that Beijing has to impart greater balance in its ties with India and
Pakistan. Chinese are also conscious of the need of Indias support for these projects in the Indian
Ocean region. MSR is an integral part of Chinas ambition to forge economic integration of Eurasia
under its auspices. This is a part of Chinas long term goal of emerging as a global rival to the US.

Following are the major infrastructure projects envisaged under the rubric of MSR:
i.

3000 km China Pakistan Economic Corridor from Kashgar to Gwadhar port in Pakistan which
is going through POK-a 46bn USD project funded by China.

ii.

2800 km Rail/Road Project from Kunming (China) to Kolkata (India) via Myanmar, Bangladesh
called BCIM corridor.

iii.

1215 km Rail/Road corridor project from Yunnan (China) to the port of Kyankpya (Myanmar).

iv.

741 km Rail corridor from Lhasa (Tibet) to Kathmandu (Nepal) and to Patna (BiharIndia).

v.

A 5000km Naning (China) to Singapore Economic Corridor.

NaningSingapore Economic Corridor is an initiative of China, beginning in 2010, which would

connect several cities in Southern China with Nanning in China, Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh in Vietnam,
Vientiane in Laos, Phnom Penh in Cambodia, Bangkok in Thailand, Kuala Lumpur in Malaysia and
Singapore, with modern road, rail, pipelines as well as crossborders connectivity. The corridor is
planned to better connect China with ASEAN economies and encourage development across the whole
region --- en route to the emergence of an ASEANChina Free Trade Area in the near future.
The core initiative aimed at economic integration would connect eight major cities. The corridor being
is structured to help China, which aims to revamp its economy to a more developed new normal
plain, planned to shift its excess manufacturing capacity to the less developed zones in the ASEAN.
The NaningSingapore economic corridor also called ChinaIndo-China Peninsula International
Corridor.
Sub - Themes:
Road and Belt Mega Project: Interplay of Economics and Politics
Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB): Role and Reach
New Development Bank of BRICS: Problems and Prospects
ChinaA Link between Eurasia and Indian Ocean: Analysis of Chinas Geo-Strategy
India-China Equation: Indias Dilemma-Containment cum Cooperation; Chinas Choices; Views of
ASEAN Countries, Japan, USA, Russia, etc.
Director
UGC Centre for Indian Ocean Studies
Osmania University, Hyderabad 7.