Bangladesh’s export-led model of development is the major factor behind its growth dynamism and has altered its status from being a bottomless basket case to an Asian tiger in the making writes N Chandra Mohan for South Asia Monitor

South Asians account for 15 million workers in these countries. The prospect now is for return migration back to India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal, and Sri Lanka which can only deepen the existing economic gloom in the region, writes N Chandra Mohan for South Asia Monitor

If India is to defend its turf against China in the SAARC region, it must contribute to greater flows of intra-regional trade and investments by accepting “asymmetrical responsibilities” in opening its market to neighbours without insisting on reciprocity, writes N Chandra Mohan for South Asia Monitor

Onions may just be a singular example but if unwritten undertakings are violated, the saga of bans exemplify a larger story of how a trust deficit ensures that trade within South Asia remains perhaps the lowest in the world, writes N Chandra Mohan for South Asia Monitor

The progress of India’s air bubble agreements with neighbouring South Asian countries bears watching in the period ahead, writes N Chandra Mohan for South Asia Monitor

The growing burden of public debt remains a major source of vulnerability for Pakistan, especially when it has to borrow more and more to service its existing obligations, both domestic and foreign, writes N Chandra Mohan for South Asia Monitor

Given Sri Lanka’s strategic location in the Indian Ocean, India seeks to exert all its influence to rebalance the island nation away from the dragon’s embrace, writes N Chandra Mohan for South Asia Monitor

A total of 142 connectivity projects in Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Maldives, Myanmar, Nepal and Sri Lanka have been initiated by India over the last six years, of which 53 have been completed, writes N Chandra Mohan for South Asia Monitor

The southwest monsoon’s impact is felt throughout South Asia. Above-normal rainfall is likely over Pakistan, the Maldives, and Sri Lanka, while it could be less than normal in Bangladesh, writes N Chandra Mohan for South Asia Monitor

The dragon’s shadow has lengthened over the South Asian region as it has rapidly developed port and transport infrastructure, some of it as part of its Belt and Road Initiative, writes N Chandra Mohan for South Asia Monitor