Decoding EAM’s Bhutan visit

This article is authored by Cchavi Vasisht, associate fellow, Chintan Research Foundation, New Delhi.

In line with the tradition of regular high-level exchanges, external affairs minister S Jaishankar's three-day visit to Bhutan was both productive and multi-dimensional. The energy cooperation received a push with a ₹4,000-crore credit line signed and the foundation stone was laid for the 500 kW Lunana Hydropower Project; trade and connectivity received appreciation the with two sides taking note of discussions on the renewal of the Agreement on Trade, Commerce and Transit and a new Land Customs Station at Samrang in Assam. The two sides also welcomed the operationalisation of a Unified Payments Interface (UPI)-based facility.

Bhutan (Unsplash)

Several sectoral development initiatives such as 65-bed Gyaltsuen Jetsun Pema Mother and Child Hospital in Mongar, 54 electric vehicles handed over, 43 Jersey cows transferred to the National Cattle Breeding Centre in Bumthang and commissioning of Jaganathan Bridge on the Samdrup Jongkhar-Trashigang Highway in eastern Bhutan. And as part of efforts to strengthen educational cooperation, the two countries agreed to double the number of seats for Bhutanese students under the Indian Council for Cultural Relations and the Nalanda University Scholarship Scheme. The two sides further agreed to renew the Memorandum of Understanding on the Nehru-Wangchuck Scholarship. These are the steps reaching Bhutan's youth and its outlying regions, not just its capital.

Bhutan has remained the model case, the neighbour New Delhi holds up as proof that its regional diplomacy still works. And it must be noted that this is not a result of some isolated spontaneous visits or efforts, but efforts towards decades-long near-continuous engagement. Seen against the backdrop of the past year, the visit's real significance comes into focus. It follows Prime Minister (PM) Modi's State visit last November for the Fourth King's birthday, the operationalisation of the 2024 Joint Vision on Energy Partnership early this year, the long-delayed resumption of construction on the 1,200 MW Punatsangchhu-I project, and the slow but real progress on India-funded rail links to Gelephu. And most recently, the agreement on a tariff protocol for Punatsangchhu-I, alongside confirmation that construction has resumed on the 1,200 MW project, closes out a genuinely difficult chapter of cost overruns and delays with a workable financial settlement. And most importantly, the consistent budgetary support and aid, India is working consistently to keep building on this partnership.

And while these are significant initiatives what the next chapter of Bhutan requires is dedicated focus for the Gelephu Mindfulness City, King Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck's special administrative region on the Assam border, conceived as a self-governing economic hub built around "mindful prosperity." This is going to be a defining pillar of future relations. In this direction, both sides have already set up a Joint Working Group. And what was announced during PM Modi's last year visit, received confirmation during Jaishankar’s visit that an Immigration checkpost at Hatisar in Assam will be established to facilitate the movement of investors and visitors to Gelephu. Bhutan also welcomed India’s decision to establish a special temporary immigration facility at Hatisar to facilitate the entry and exit of third-country nationals for Project 108 Chortens/Stupas from November 1, 2026.

Further, the India-funded Kokrajhar–Gelephu and Banarhat–Samtse rail links, are already underway, and they will be India's first cross-border rail connections to Bhutan. These rail links will allow Gelephu to draw directly on Guwahati, Kolkata, Delhi and beyond. Fast-tracking these links, and extending Indian investment into Gelephu's priority sectors, such as green technology, education, financial services would enable India to be part of Bhutan's next growth phase.

And last, the strategic dimension. Bhutan sits between the two large neighbours, India and China. While India is not part of the boundary talks between China and Bhutan, it is watching closely. In the past few months, Bhutan and China have continued their boundary talks, which might be inching toward a settlement and Bhutan has strong incentives to get that boundary settled sooner. But the trouble is that the most contested piece of that boundary is the Doklam plateau, a few kilometers from the Siliguri Corridor that connects India's mainland to its northeast. This has been a concern for India, because any deal that trades away Bhutanese claims near Doklam in exchange for concessions elsewhere would leave India compromised on its most sensitive frontier.

India-Bhutan ties are a product of a deliberate, decades-long Indian choice to treat Bhutan as a genuine partner in its own development and this visit is the latest, well-executed instalment of that choice. The lesson of this visit, in short, is that India has a working model, tested over decades, that deserves to be applied with even greater ambition to what comes next. Hydropower cooperation supported Bhutan's public finances once; digital infrastructure and Gelephu-linked connectivity can do the same for its next generation. Therefore, it is important to ensure that agreements are matched by execution speed and delivery, geographic reach and a public diplomacy that resonates with both the Royal government and Bhutanese citizens.

(The views expressed are personal)

This article is authored by Cchavi Vasisht, associate fellow, Chintan Research Foundation, New Delhi.