{"id":48393,"date":"2025-07-17T20:59:25","date_gmt":"2025-07-17T15:29:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/?p=48393"},"modified":"2025-08-02T13:14:35","modified_gmt":"2025-08-02T07:44:35","slug":"bimstec-ports-conclave","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/current-affairs\/17-07-2025\/bimstec-ports-conclave","title":{"rendered":"BIMSTEC Ports Conclave"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p><strong>Syllabus: GS2\/IR<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Context<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>The Union Minister of Ports, Shipping &amp; Waterways (MoPSW) inaugurated the <strong>second edition of BIMSTEC Ports Conclave.<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>About Ports Conclave<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>The two-day BIMSTEC Ports Conclave was held under the auspices of the <strong>Visakhapatnam Port Authority.<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Theme:<\/strong> Blue Economy, Innovation and Sustainable Partnerships.&nbsp;<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Representatives of ministries from port authorities of BIMSTEC member nations<\/strong> of Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Myanmar, Nepal, Sri Lanka, and Thailand participated in it.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Aim: <\/strong>To operationalise the recently signed <strong>BIMSTEC Agreement on Maritime Transport Cooperation (AMTC)<\/strong>, facilitate dialogue on port-led development, and foster deeper integration in maritime trade, logistics, cruise tourism, and skill development.&nbsp;<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>BIMSTEC Sustainable Maritime Transport Centre<\/strong> is going to be established under the Indian Ocean Centre of Excellence for Sustainable Maritime Transport (IOCE-SMarT) at Mumbai.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-table\"><table class=\"has-background\" style=\"background-color:#ebecf0\"><tbody><tr><td><strong>About BIMSTEC<\/strong><br>&#8211; It is a regional cooperation organization formed in <strong>1997 <\/strong>with the signing of the <strong>Bangkok Declaration.<\/strong><br>1. It unites South and <strong>Southeast Asian nations bordering the Bay of Bengal.<\/strong><br>&#8211; <strong>Founding Members (1997): <\/strong>Bangladesh, India, Sri Lanka, Thailand.<br>&#8211; <strong>Current Members:<\/strong> It comprises seven member states, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Myanmar, Nepal, Sri Lanka, and Thailand.<br>&#8211; <strong>Objective:<\/strong> To help countries in their economic growth, to support social development, and to encourage development in other areas, like science, technology and economic development.<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Significance of BIMSTEC Ports Conclave for India<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Advancing Maritime Connectivity and Trade Efficiency: <\/strong>The conclave emphasized the operationalization of the BIMSTEC Coastal Shipping and Maritime Transport Agreements, which is vital for India\u2019s ambitions to become a regional maritime logistics hub.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Strengthening India\u2019s \u2018Act East\u2019 and \u2018Neighbourhood First\u2019 Policies: <\/strong>By engaging BIMSTEC countries the conclave reinforces India\u2019s \u2018Act East\u2019 policy, which seeks deeper ties with Southeast Asia.\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Neighbourhood First policy, especially with Bangladesh, Nepal, and Bhutan, by improving their access to the sea through Indian ports.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Operationalizing the Kaladan Multi-Modal Transit Transport Project: <\/strong>The conclave showcased India\u2019s flagship Kaladan project, which connects Kolkata Port \u2192 Sittwe Port (Myanmar) \u2192 Inland waterway to Paletwa \u2192 Road to Mizoram.\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>This corridor is a model for multi-modal regional connectivity and vital in improving access to its northeastern states.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Enhancing India\u2019s Leadership in Regional Maritime Architecture: <\/strong>India used the conclave to project itself as a maritime leader in South and Southeast Asia by hosting the conclave in Visakhapatnam, a strategically located eastern port.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Promoting the Blue Economy and Sustainable Development: <\/strong>The conclave promoted sustainable maritime practices, this aligns with India&#8217;s Blue Economy Policy Framework, which seeks to balance economic growth with ocean ecosystem protection.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Challenges<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Uneven Infrastructure Across BIMSTEC Countries: <\/strong>While India has made substantial investments in port modernization, many BIMSTEC members lack comparable port or transport infrastructure.\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>This infrastructure asymmetry makes it difficult to operationalize seamless port-to-port connectivity and multimodal transport corridors.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Institutional and Regulatory Divergences: <\/strong>Differing customs regulations, maritime safety standards, and documentation requirements across member countries create operational bottlenecks.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Delays in Ratification and Implementation of Agreements: <\/strong>Although India has ratified the BIMSTEC Agreement on Maritime Transport Cooperation, several other member states are yet to do so.\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>This leads to sluggish progress in transforming agreements into actionable frameworks and corridor-level coordination.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Geopolitical Competition in the Bay of Bengal: <\/strong>Rising influence of China through the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) in BIMSTEC countries challenges India\u2019s maritime leadership.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Financial and Capacity Constraints: <\/strong>Despite India\u2019s commitments, limited financial resources and human capital in smaller BIMSTEC countries restrict large-scale participation in port development or digital upgrades.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Way Ahead<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>While the BIMSTEC Ports Conclave has opened up vast opportunities for India to become the maritime centre of the Bay of Bengal, several challenges \u2014 infrastructural, institutional, geopolitical, and logistical \u2014 must be addressed.&nbsp;<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>A coordinated push involving capacity building, diplomatic engagement, infrastructure financing, and security cooperation is necessary to translate vision into outcomes.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Source: <\/strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.pib.gov.in\/PressReleasePage.aspx?PRID=2144656#:~:text=The%20Union%20Minister%20of%20Ports,the%20Bay%20of%20Bengal%20region.\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\"><strong>TH<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<h3><strong>Context<\/strong><\/h3>\n<li class=\"ms-5\">The Union Minister of Ports, Shipping &#038; Waterways (MoPSW) inaugurated the second edition of BIMSTEC Ports Conclave.<\/li>\n<p><\/p>\n<h3><strong>About Ports Conclave<\/strong><\/h3>\n<li class=\"ms-5\">The two-day BIMSTEC Ports Conclave was held under the auspices of the Visakhapatnam Port Authority.<\/li>\n<li class=\"ms-5\">Representatives of ministries from port authorities of BIMSTEC member nations of Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Myanmar, Nepal, Sri Lanka, and Thailand participated in it.<\/li>\n<li class=\"ms-5\">Aim: To operationalise the recently signed BIMSTEC Agreement on Maritime Transport Cooperation (AMTC), facilitate dialogue on port-led development, and foster deeper integration in maritime trade, logistics, cruise tourism, and skill development.\u00a0<\/li>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/current-affairs\/17-07-2025\/bimstec-ports-conclave\" class=\"btn btn-primary btn-sm float-end\">Read\u00a0More<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":15,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[21],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-48393","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-current-affairs"],"acf":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/48393","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/15"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=48393"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/48393\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":50183,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/48393\/revisions\/50183"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=48393"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=48393"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=48393"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}