Topic: India and its neighbourhood- relations. Bilateral, regional and global groupings and agreements involving India and/or affecting India’s interests
Q4. “South Asia’s climate destiny has shifted from multilateral dependency to regional self-determinism.” Analyse how climate solidarity can reconfigure power asymmetries. Suggest a realistic integration pathway. (10 M)
Difficulty Level: Medium
Reference: IE
Why the question
Regional climate efforts are gaining traction as multilateral climate finance and mitigation commitments falter, compelling South Asia to adopt internally anchored climate cooperation.Key demand of the question
The question requires explaining the shift from external-dependent climate pathways to region-led climate action, analysing how solidarity can rebalance power, and outlining a pragmatic integration route.Structure of the Answer
Introduction
Briefly highlight how climate finance underperformance and shared ecological risks have driven South Asia toward autonomous climate cooperation.Body
- Note the shift from multilateral reliance to internalised regional climate structuring.
- On reconfiguring power asymmetries: Refer to collective bargaining and shared knowledge systems improving leverage.
- On integration pathway: Point to phased institutionalisation and region-based finance and technology pooling.
Conclusion
End with how sequenced regional climate architecture can convert vulnerability into shared strategic resilience.
