Borders in South Asia: Interlinkages & Challenges

The papers on interlinkages, conflicts and challenges to management bear reference to international borders in South Asia. They view the cross border socio-economic linkages across countries in the region that sometimes make the border lands separate entities with an independent socio-cultural and economic identity. They examine conflicts over borders due to encroachment, river shifting, wind erosion and intentional violation of border demarcations by countries as in the case of India and China, and India and Pakistan. They discuss the threats to border security and management practices, reviewing the functioning of the McMohan Line, state of immigrants in border districts, opportunities across the Nathu-la Trade route and even nuclear deterrence across the borders. They are concerned with aspects like role of microfinance in north-eastern border states, issues and prospects of tourism in South Asia and India’s role in the emerging world order in the context of geopolitics in the region.