A big development happened in 2025. Nepal started exporting electricity to Bangladesh through India's transmission network. This was the first time Nepalese hydropower was commercially transmitted to Bangladesh via Indian territory. The initial export volume was 40 megawatts. The significance of the agreement is much bigger. It showed that regional energy cooperation can overcome political barriers.
India's rise as a major global power will depend not on the promises of allies or the intentions of adversaries but on its capacity to build economic strength, military capability, technological innovation, and strategic resilience. Partnerships will remain important. Cooperation will remain valuable. Engagement with the United States and other powers will continue to serve Indian interests. But the foundation of India's security cannot rest in Washington, Moscow, Beijing, or any other foreign capital.
However, evolving regional dynamics, particularly China’s expansion and Pakistan’s tactical nuclear developments, continue to test the durability and interpretation of this doctrine. While India has officially reiterated its commitment to No First Use, debates persist within strategic circles about its future applicability under extreme scenarios.
The significance of Shisir Khanal’s visit therefore lies not only in the agreements reached but in the broader message it conveyed. Both Kathmandu and New Delhi are signalling a willingness to move beyond the grievances and suspicions that have periodically defined their interactions. If the emphasis on development diplomacy, economic integration, and pragmatic cooperation is sustained, the current moment could indeed mark the beginning of a new chapter in India–Nepal relations.
By holding the military accountable for its atrocities against the Rohingya, the ICJ might create the incentive for further international action to ensure justice for all victims of Myanmar’s security forces, writes Dr Arpita Hazarika for South Asia Monitor
The recent executions are an attempt to terrorize the people to move away from that path of dissidence and political activism, writes Sreeradha Datta for South Asia Monitor
High quality STEM education will enable India to lead the world in the evolving technological and knowledge-based economy, writes Amb Sarvajit Chakravarti (retd) for South Asia Monitor
India-Bangladesh bonhomie on the security front has reached newer heights. Their strategic relations will continue to add more depth and momentum, writes Kamal Uddin Mazumder for South Asia Monitor
The people have determined that a new political order is required because of the negative experiences from the past, where the legislative and executive powers opposed each other, resulting in instability, writes Sugeeswara Senadhira for South Asia Monitor
Keeping in mind the economic progress of Bangladesh, it can be said that besides the construction of the Padma Bridge, the new communication system being developed between the two countries will further strengthen their bonds, writes Tapan Das for South Asia Monitor
Bangladesh has already taken cautionary measures to not be a loan defaulter to avoid a Sri Lanka like situation, writes Sufian Siddique for South Asia Monitor
Floods in the Brahmaputra basin in Assam and downstream Bangladesh are common every year, especially during the June-September monsoon that brings South Asia most of its annual rainfall
It must be noted that tolerance, acceptability and confidence form a nation’s basic tenets. Aggression, violence and intolerance stall its progress and development, write Abhinav Mehrotra and Dr Biswanath Gupta for South Asia Monitor
Although the results will change the government in Punjab, a politically important province of 110 million people, its implications may not be limited to the province, writes Shraddha Nand Bhatnagar for South Asia Monitor
India can also help Bhutan to realize its green goals by promoting hybrid CNG/electric powered passenger and goods transport vehicles. These vehicles may be based at an EV park at Phuntsholing. Goods received there after customs clearance can then be distributed by Bhutan's own transport systems, employing their own nationals as drivers, helpers, mechanics and loaders, writes Amb Sarvajit Chakravarti (retd) for South Asia Monitor
What can we learn from Sri Lanka's disastrous style of ruling, intensification of sectarian divides, marginalization of minorities and power concentrated in autocrats is there for all to see, writes Dr Ram Puniyani for South Asia Monitor
India also no longer capitalizes adequately upon her best known international icons such as Mahatma Gandhi, writes Amb Sarvajit Chakravarti (retd) for South Asia Monitor
Instability in Sri Lanka is not in India’s interests but at the same time it offers New Delhi an opportunity to help its strategic neighbour emerge from the epic mess it finds itself in, writes Mayank Chhaya for South Asia Monitor
As South Asia is now better connected, ensuring BBIN food security will become even easier with packaging centres set up in each country with its own distribution, writes Amb Sarvajit Chakravarti (retd) for South Asia Monitor
