Let us walk the path of progress together - Indian PM Dr. Manmohan Singh

India has always been aware that it cannot prosper and progress without its neig bouring countries also prospering, an progressing, in equal measure.

It is only through partnerships and cooperation that we can harness our respective strengths, said Indian Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh in an interview with the editors of Himal, the South Asian magazine.

In his written response to Himal’s questions, Prime Minister Singh recommends jettisoning “the mindsets of the past”.

The following are excerpts from the interview.

Q:Do you believe that the Government of India and the Indian intelligentsia are today more aware of the need for Southasian integration? What has led to this change?

A: We believe that historically the Southasian region has flourished the most when it has been connected to itself, and to the rest of the world. It is because of this that under India’s chairmanship of SAARC, we focused on strengthening connectivity in our region - physical, economic and of the mind.

There is today in Southasia an unprecedented economic vibrancy. This has brought with it a historic opportunity to eliminate poverty and disease from our region. But we are also aware of the enormous challenges that have to be overcome, such as terrorism, climate change and food and energy security.

Q:What are the specific steps the Government of India is planning to take to achieve ‘interconnectivity’?

A: We are taking steps to upgrade border infrastructure and road and rail links at important border crossing points.

Progress has been achieved in upgrading our rail and road network up to points along the India-Nepal, India-Bhutan and India-Bangladesh borders. We have hosted the first SAARC Transport Ministers Meeting in August 2007, which deliberated on the SAARC Regional Multimodal Transport Study. We have also circulated a draft Motor Vehicles and a draft Railways Agreement among SAARC members to operationalise seamless travel between the member states.

In addition to physical connectivity, we have undertaken other initiatives. The first is the tele-education project that will link the Indira Gandhi National Open University to other Open Universities within the SAARC region. The project will commence by establishing links with Sri Lanka’s Open University. The second is the hosting of the South Asian University that we expect will become operational by 2010.

The third is the tele-medicine project connecting super-speciality hospitals within SAARC member states, which has taken off with the commencement of the India-Bhutan and India-Sri Lanka linkages.

In the area of trade, we have taken several steps to open our markets to our neighbours on a non-reciprocal basis. We have decided to give zero duty access to the LDCs from January 1, 2008. We have also unilaterally reduced our negative list with respect to exports from LDCs.

Q:You have spoken of making borders irrelevant. And yet, it is India that is promoting the hardening of frontiers, with thousands of kilometres of barbed-wire fences along its eastern and western borders. How do you see the process of dismantling beginning, even as fences are in the process of being put up?

A: India is committed to intra-regional integration through SAFTA and the other mechanisms. The increase in regional tourism, exchange of scholars, greater people-to-people contacts would not have taken place if we were putting up barriers.

In fact, with the entry of Afghanistan, the geographical contours of SAARC have widened.

At the same time, we have a duty to ensure that our people prosper and progress in a secure environment. Southasia has witnessed the most heinous acts of terrorism in living memory in recent times, including the bombing of our embassy in Kabul where precious lives were lost. The scourge of terrorism must be removed from our midst and criminals and terrorists must never go unpunished.

There can be no economic growth or development without peace and security. We need to take all necessary measures to combat terrorism and trans-national crimes like trafficking of women and children. Measures that facilitate better border management and prevent illegal trans-border movement are in the interests of all sides.

Q:The India-Pakistan rivalry is said to keep all Southasia hostage.

Do you think that the relationship is improving, and if so, how do you see this impacting the rest of the region? What can you tell the Southasian audience about the prospects of the Kashmir issue in the coming year?

A: India seeks to establish peaceful, friendly and cooperative ties with Pakistan. We are committed to addressing all outstanding issues, including the issue of Jammu and Kashmir, through bilateral discussions. In the last four years that my government has been in office, we have been able to make substantial progress in our relations with Pakistan.

Today, there is a large constituency for peace in both our countries, and there is an opportunity to move ahead. However, improvement in our relations requires an atmosphere that is free from terrorism.

Terrorism weakens and undermines efforts towards peace and normalisation.

We would like to see the implementation in letter and spirit of commitments made to bring to an end terrorist activities originating in Pakistan.

Q:The development of Sri Lanka-India economic links is held out as an example for other bilateral relationships in Southasia. What is so significant about this relationship?

A: Since the entry into force of the India-Sri Lanka Free Trade Agreement in March 2000, our trade has grown rapidly. Sri Lanka is our largest trade partner in the SAARC region, and the total volume of our trade stands at almost USD 3.3 billion in 2007.

India is the third largest destination of Sri Lankan exports while India is the fourth largest investor in Sri Lanka. We have close to 120 airline flights per week and tourist arrivals from India are the largest.

It is my hope that the conclusion of the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement will further boost trade in goods and services, investment and economic cooperation. I hope we can extrapolate this win-win economic relationship throughout the region.