Allying interests

In its ties with Nepal and Bhutan, India faces a challenge-preserve partnerships without suffocating them

- BY LT GEN SHOKIN CHAUHAN (RETD)

When I look at the map of South Asia, I don't just see the Himalayas.

I feel them. I hear the crunch of boots in snow, the clang of prayer bells, the laughter of children chasing a ball on a mountain path. To most, these peaks are borders on a map. To me, they are living companions, sentinels that have stood guard longer than memory.

I have served in these heights where clouds drift so low you can touch them. In Mustang, Nepal, an old Gurkha widow once told me how the mountains keep people honest. In Lomanthang, a monk paused and said, "Soldiers stand on both sides." Those words have never left me.

Nepal and Bhutan are not pawns. They are proud nations, shaped by centuries of hardship and dignity. They have endured earthquakes, blockades and politics, yet walked their own way. Today, as China's shadow grows longer, their survival and sovereignty remain crucial to India's security. The Siliguri Corridor, our chicken's neck, makes this region India's most fragile frontier.

Geography has made Nepal and Bhutan buffers between giants. Prithvi Narayan Shah called Nepal a “yam between two boulders”. Bhutan's rulers took a quieter approach, keeping outside powers at arm's length. The British formalised this logic, turning them into protective cushions for the Raj. Treaties ensured that if danger came from the north, India (and earlier Britain) would stand on the line.