defenceandspacediary
14 News the Newsbehind JULY 08, 2019economic capacity and social stability in
these areas while also creating a simul-
taneous decline in Bangladesh’s labour
force and productivity. While frictions
arising from cross-border migration from
Bangladesh have already manifested in a
variety of Indian states bordering Ban-
gladesh, India’s Assam state emerges as a
prime example where the issue has been
identifi ed as an act of “external aggres-
sion” by the former governor of Assam
and the Indian Supreme Court.
It would thus be worthwhile for
New Delhi and Dhaka to coordinate
with each other to address the issue
sustainably. Such coordination might,
in fact, also help prepare both countries
for a potential future scenario when large
scale climate-induced migration from
Bangladesh into India occurs.
Another issue that could possibly get
aggravated due to climate change eff ects
is the disputes over trans-boundary rivers.
Tensions over trans-boundary river waters
have been known to trigger a variety of
confl icts in diff erent parts of the world.
Despite India and Bangladesh sharing 54
trans-boundary rivers, there exists only
one water sharing treaty between the
two, i.e. the Ganga waters sharing treaty,
which was signed in 1996 for a period of
30 years (renewable by mutual consent).
As a lower riparian, Bangladesh’s water
security is directly vulnerable to the
eff ects of upper riparian India’s activities
on these rivers. Damming and other
activities on these rivers in India have
an impact on availability of water for
irrigation, industry, energy demands, and
public consumption in Bangladesh.
Equally, India’s national security
and stability is connected to those of
Bangladesh’s. The effects of climate
change on Bangladesh are likely to be
projected onto India, over and above
the latter’s own vulnerability to climate
change impacts. In order to safeguard its
national interests, India, therefore, needs
to coordinate with Bangladesh to begin
managing these issues well in advance.
Given the circumstances, viewingclimate change as a national security
related concern could open conversations
among governments regarding potential
future scenarios. Th is provides an avenue
for both countries to build capacities
and introduce anticipatory measures
in a timely manner. Mutuality of
interests on these issues could also be
amplifi ed in policy discourses to speed
up identifi cation of remedial measures.
Discussing climate change from a
national security perspective with the
same degree of attention and urgency as
any other strategic concern is imperative
also because it can provide a potent segue
for prioritising climate change not only in
the national and bilateral policymaking
domain but also on the regional level.
LOOKING AHEAD
In January 2019, the UN Security
Council demonstrated renewed
interest in discussing the risks posed by
climate change to peace, security and
development. A similar debate in India
on national security concerns linked
to climate change would be extremely
useful for related policymaking and
public consciousness. Th is, in turn, will
be contributory to fostering conditions
necessary for ensuring human security
since ensuring national security is not
merely about protecting territory but
also about providing protection for the
peoples in that territory.
At present, India’s climate policy is
fragmented and does not address the
wider and impeding national security
related concerns. While this study looked
at the India-Bangladesh context, India also
directly neighbours six other countries.
Given that the cumulative impact of
climate change also has the potential to
catalyse confl ict by aggravating unresolved
domestic and transnational security
issues, examining climate change as a
national and regional security concern
could help spark more comprehensive
and coordinated domestic policy action
as well as facilitate regional cooperation.
(Th e article was fi rst published by
New Delhi-based IPCS)Ph: +91 9810622100
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