Sunil and I wrote this book for the Indian Council of World Affairs (ICWA), Sapru House, New Delhi last year. From the back cover: “About the Book” – In terms of strategic importance, Central Asia punches much above its weight. Not only is it in India’s “extended neighbourhood”, with a congruent security outlook, but given the situation in Afghanistan, strong ties with the Central Asian States (CAS) would be an asset in navigating India’s interests in Afghanistan, and elsewhere. A look at the various dimensions of the relationship suggests that strengthening economic ties could be an effective way of securing India’s interests in the region.

The key question the book tries to address is: what are the ways in which the economic potential between India and CAS could be more fully realised? It looks at areas of convergence in economic ties through an assessment of key sectors. It also attempts to analyse the bugbear of India-CAS trading ties – connectivity.

Some photos from the field trips undertaken for the book:

Indian pharmaceutical companies like Shayana Pharma (photo above) have transitioned from simple trading to manufacturing-cum-trading, which seems to be a useful path to follow for many. Also, in the last one year or so since the book came out, air connectivity has improved with an Indian airlines -Indigo operating flights to Tashkent and Almaty. This has quickly resulted in a significant rise in tourist travel, especially from India, and hopefully will also facilitate business partnerships in the years to come.

The potential for the Central Asian economies to progress beyond being primarily oil and mineral extractive economies is immense, in areas like agri-processing, seri-culture, renewable energy, and creating a strong tourism infrastructure. In this journey, India (Indian businesses) can be a reliable partner, both as a market and investor.

***