Do you think that BIMSTEC is a parallel organisation like the SAARC? What are the similarities and dissimilarities between the two? How are Indian foreign policy objectives realized by forming this new organisation?
Approach · directive: “do you think / what / how”
What it asks · Three parts: whether BIMSTEC parallels SAARC, how the two resemble and differ, and how BIMSTEC serves India's foreign-policy objectives.
The question has 3 parts — answer each
- Do you think: whether BIMSTEC is a parallel organisation to SAARC — take a position
- What: the similarities and dissimilarities between the two
- How: the Indian foreign-policy objectives realised through BIMSTEC
Open with · BIMSTEC (1997) links five South Asian and two Southeast Asian states around the Bay of Bengal, while SAARC (1985) covers eight South Asian states.
Cover
- Parallel or complement? BIMSTEC complements SAARC, though its rise after SAARC's stalling (last summit 2014) makes it look like a substitute.
- Similarities: regional groupings of developing states, run by summits and secretariats (Dhaka and Kathmandu), seeking trade, connectivity and poverty reduction.
- Membership: BIMSTEC excludes Pakistan, Afghanistan and the Maldives and adds Myanmar and Thailand, bridging South and Southeast Asia.
- Approach: BIMSTEC is sector-driven (transport, energy, security, trade, disaster management) and adopted a Charter in 2022; SAARC's charter bars bilateral disputes, yet they stalled it.
- India's objectives: Neighbourhood First and Act East, a bridge to Southeast Asia, Northeast development through Kaladan and the Trilateral Highway, and a forum without Pakistan.
- Also: Bay of Bengal maritime and energy security, counter-terrorism, disaster response, and balance against China's regional presence.
- Challenges: slow free-trade talks, thin intra-regional trade, funding gaps, Myanmar's political crisis, and bilateral frictions.
Close with · BIMSTEC is a functional complement to SAARC; India should deliver on connectivity and trade rather than treat it as a political substitute.
Add value (verified)
- BIMSTEC was set up in 1997 and has seven members, five in South Asia and two (Myanmar and Thailand) in Southeast Asia. History — BIMSTEC Secretariat ↗“the organisation is now known as BIMSTEC and comprises seven Member States with the admission of Myanmar on 22 December 1997, and Bhutan and Nepal in February 2004”
Question: UPSC's CS (Main) 2022, GS Paper II — paper ↗. Approach: Minimalist IAS, checked 30 Sept 2026 (how we verify) — UPSC publishes no model answers. ·
Model answer · 224 words (UPSC limit 150) · Minimalist IAS
BIMSTEC (1997) brings together five South Asian and two Southeast Asian states around the Bay of Bengal; SAARC (1985) covers eight South Asian states. BIMSTEC gained momentum after SAARC stalled; its last summit was in 2014.
Parallel or complement?
- Not a parallel body: BIMSTEC complements SAARC with a different geography and a sectoral agenda; its rise after SAARC stalled only makes it look like one.
Similarities and dissimilarities
- Similar: regional groupings of developing states, run through summits and secretariats (Dhaka and Kathmandu), seeking trade, connectivity and poverty reduction.
- Membership: BIMSTEC leaves out Pakistan, Afghanistan and the Maldives and adds Myanmar and Thailand, bridging South and Southeast Asia.
- Approach: BIMSTEC is sector-driven (transport, energy, security, trade, disaster management) and adopted a Charter only in 2022; SAARC's charter bars bilateral disputes, yet India–Pakistan tensions stalled it.
India's objectives through BIMSTEC
- Neighbourhood First meets Act East: a bridge to Southeast Asia, development of the Northeast through the Kaladan project and the Trilateral Highway, and a forum free of Pakistan's veto.
- Bay of Bengal maritime and energy security, counter-terrorism, disaster response and a balance to China's regional presence.
- Challenges: slow free-trade talks, thin intra-regional trade, funding gaps, Myanmar's political crisis and bilateral frictions.
BIMSTEC is a functional complement to SAARC, not its replacement; India should deliver on connectivity and trade rather than treat it as a political substitute.
Written by Minimalist IAS from facts checked at source (how we verify) — a little fuller than exam length, so every part of the question is covered; in the hall, keep the structure and trim the detail. UPSC publishes no model answers: compare your structure and coverage with this, then write your own.