India-Bhutan relations
Topic: India and her Neighbours · NCERT: Class 7, Ch 2 "India and Her Neighbours"
Meaning
Bhutan is a small landlocked kingdom in the eastern Himalaya. Its own name for itself is "Druk Yul", which means Land of the Thunder Dragon. It shares a 699 km border with Sikkim, West Bengal, Assam and Arunachal Pradesh. Several things tie the two countries together:
- Rivers and power: rivers such as the Sankosh, Manas, Raidak and Torsa flow from Bhutan into India. India helps build dams on them, and Bhutan sells the electricity to India.
- Faith: Padmasambhava brought Vajrayana Buddhism to Bhutan in the 8th century CE.
- Treaty: their friendship treaty was revised in 2007.
Bhutan is also known for measuring progress by Gross National Happiness instead of income alone.
Example
The Tala hydropower project (1,020 MW) in Bhutan was dedicated in 2008, and Mangdechhu followed in 2019. Both send electricity to India.
Related concepts
- India-Nepal border
- India-Nepal Treaty of Peace and Friendship
- Kalapani-Lipulekh-Limpiyadhura
- Mahakali Treaty (1996)
- Doklam
- Chumbi Valley
- Siliguri Corridor