ABOUT THE BOOK
fjrigjwwe9r0pp_Books:Description
The BCIM (Bangladesh, China,
India, Myanmar) Forum (earlier known as the Kunming Initiative) was founded as
a Track-II Dialogue in 1999 with the objective of widening and deepening
regional and sub-regional cooperation. Over the years, member countries of the
forum have strived to work together on issues such as trade tourism and
connectivity as well as cooperation in social, cultural and academic fields to
enhance interactions at all levels.
While physical connectivity for
the BCIM-EC is important, it is equally important to consider various soft
connectivity inputs into the project considering that the member countries
together constitute a market of 2.8 billion people and a GDP of more than US$ 9
trillion. Swift economic transitions in Myanmar have given a fillip to India
and China’s attempts to promote growth and development in their respective
border provinces. These developments inter-alia have led to mushrooming of
sub-regional cooperation that involves trade facilitation measures in its
broadest meaning to include transit and motor vehicles agreements, customs
procedures, special arrangements for border trade, etc.
The BCIM-EC project would need to
assess the potential benefits to India, particularly to the North East Region.
The infrastructural needs of this sub-region as well as the prospects for
enhanced trade and investments, revival of traditional industries and other
welfare gains would require careful analyses. This book attempts to analyse
such issues in addition to assessing the opportunities that BCIM-EC offers, and
challenges that it faced with.
ABOUT Author
fjrigjwwe9r0pp_Books:aboutAuthor
Ambassador Rajiv Kumar Bhatia is the Director General, Indian
Council of World Affairs (ICWA), New Delhi since June 2012. Earlier, as a
career diplomat, he served India with distinction for over thirty-seven years.
He was India`s ambassador/high commissioner in four countries – Kenya, Myanmar,
Mexico and South Africa. Presently, he is member of the Academic Council of
Jawaharlal Nehru University, member of the governing council of the National
Institute of Design, and member-secretary of the governing council of ICWA.
Known for his intellectual inclinations, Ambassador Bhatia enjoys writing and
speaking on a wide range of foreign policy-related issues. Since his retirement
from the Indian Foreign Service in end 2009, he has published over 85 articles
on international affairs and diplomacy in India`s national dailies, journals
and periodicals. He has delivered lectures at the National Defense College,
Foreign Service Institute, universities and other institutions in India. He has
been interviewed by BBC, Bloomberg News, AP, NDTV, Doordarshan and Lok Sabha
TV.
Dr. Rahul Mishra is a Research Fellow at the Indian Council of
World Affairs (ICWA), Sapru House, New Delhi. Prior to joining ICWA, Dr Mishra
was a Researcher at Institute for Defence Studies & Analyses (IDSA), New
Delhi from 2009 to 2013. He earned his M.A., M. Phil and Ph.D. from Jawaharlal
Nehru University, New Delhi. He was awarded the Research Fellowship (2005-09)
of the University Grants Commission to pursue research in International
Relations. In 2012-13, Dr Mishra was a Visiting Fellow at S. Rajaratnam School
of International Studies, Nanyang Technological University (Singapore). Prior
to that, Dr. Mishra was associated with National University of Singapore
(Singapore).
He was also a Visiting Fellow at
the Australian National University (Canberra), Curtin University of Technology
(Perth), Monash University (Melbourne), and University of New South Wales
(Sydney). He has published widely and contributes articles in leading Journals,
magazines and newspapers. He has been interviewed by BBC, Channel News Asia,
Phoenix TV, DD News, Lok Sabha TV, and Rajya Sabha TV on Asia-Pacific issues.