UPSC Essentials | Mains Answer Practice GS 2 : China’s Xiaokang villages and role of India in West Asia (Week 147)

QUESTION 2

How can India leverage geopolitical instability in West Asia to enhance its position as a global economic and commercial hub?

QUESTION 1: “Border infrastructure is no longer limited to military installations but increasingly includes civilian settlements as instruments of strategic control.” Discuss in the context of China’s Xiaokang villages along the LAC.

Relevance: The question is linked to evolving dynamics along the Line of Actual Control and recurring India–China tensions. It connects with India’s response like the Vibrant Villages Programme and infrastructure push.

Note: This is not a model UPSC answer. It only provides you with a thought process which you may incorporate into the answers.

Introduction:

— As per details revealed recently by Deputy Chief of the Army Staff (Strategy), China has constructed 72% of its 628 Xiaokang, or “well-off villages,” near the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in northeastern states, with 90% in Arunachal Pradesh.

— He added that many of these settlements are in areas contested between the two countries.

Body:

You may incorporate some of the following points in your answer:

— China has been constructing 628 such Xiaokang or “well-off villages” along India’s borders with the Tibet Autonomous Region for over five years now. These have been constructed all along the LAC, including the Ladakh and Arunachal Pradesh borders.

— The structures include mostly double-storey, large and spacious buildings. The construction for most of these planned villages has already been completed, as per officials.

— The exact purposes of these villages have remained unclear, but they were understood to be dual-use infrastructure — can be used both for civil and military purposes — and have thus been a concern from a defence perspective. The strategic community looks at it as a way to assert Chinese claims over certain areas along the LAC.

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— Ihe exact extent of the LAC has been a source of contention between the two countries for years. India considers it to be 3,488 km long, while China says it is around 2,000 km.

— China had been constructing them aggressively since 2019, they remained vacant for a long time. However, since late 2023, Chinese nationals have started occupying several of these villages particularly across from Lohit Valley and the Tawang sector of Arunachal Pradesh. China has also been constructing infrastructure, including border villages, in Bhutanese territory.

— The Indian government announced the Vibrant Villages Programme in 2022 to develop its border villages into modern villages with all amenities and as tourist attractions. The programme builds on the existing Border Area Development Programme (BADP) under the Union Ministry of Home Affairs.

Conclusion:

— Under the Vibrant Villages Programme, India plans to develop 663 border villages into modern villages in the first phase. Of them, at least 17 such border villages along the borders with China in Ladakh, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Sikkim and Arunachal Pradesh, have been selected for development as a pilot project.

— In Arunachal Pradesh, villages in the eastern part of the state and the Tawang region have been identified such as Zemithang, Taksing, Chayang Tajo, Tuting and Kibithu.

— China has been constantly building infrastructure all along the LAC, including in Arunachal Pradesh’s Tawang region and the Siang Valley. This includes the construction of new roads and bridges to improve connectivity through the passes. China has also been constructing houses and other infrastructure in Bhutanese territory.

— India has also focused on strengthening its border infrastructure and improving forward connectivity with the construction of new roads, bridges, and helipads.

(Source: What are Chinese ‘Xiaokang’ Villages, which are coming up in contested areas along LAC?)

Points to Ponder

What are the implications for existing India–China confidence-building agreements?

How effective is the Vibrant Villages Programme in countering this strategy?

Related Previous Year Questions

‘The West is fostering India as an alternative to reduce dependence on China’s supply chain and strategically to counter China’s political and economic dominance.’ Explain this statement with examples (2024)

‘China is using its economic relations and positive trade surplus as tools to develop potential military power status in Asia’. In the light of this statement, discuss its impact on India as her neighbour. (2017)

QUESTION 2: How can India leverage geopolitical instability in West Asia to enhance its position as a global economic and commercial hub?

Relevance: It is relevant due to ongoing instability in West Asia affecting energy, diaspora, and trade routes. It tests India’s strategic autonomy and proactive diplomacy. It is important for GS 2 as it links with economic ambitions—India as a global supply chain and services hub.

Prime Minister Modi greets Amir of Qatar Sheikh Tamim Bin Hamad Al-Thani at New Delhi airport. (Source: X/@MEAIndia)

Note: This is not a model UPSC answer. It only provides you with a thought process which you may incorporate into the answers.

Introduction:

— For over a century, the term “Middle East” has functioned as a dominant geopolitical shorthand, a label primarily defined by the reach of the British Empire and the strategic centrality of oil.

— The move from the “Middle East” to “West Asia” isn’t a rebranding exercise; it is a restoration of a long-standing material reality. For centuries, the Indian Ocean functioned as a cohesive, integrated system, a dense web of trade and civilisational exchange that existed long before the first Portuguese ships made landfall on the shores of India in 1498.

Body:

You may incorporate some of the following points in your answer:

Role of India in geopolitical instability in West Asia

— Abu Dhabi and Dubai are leading MICE (Meetings, Incentives, Conferences, and Exhibitions) locations. The Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre (ADNEC), the largest such venue in the Arab world, hosts more than 100 international events every year. India can use its friendly relations with the UAE to shift some of these events to Delhi, Mumbai or Bengaluru, which have venues that match ADNEC and Expo City in capacity, amenities and comfort.

— India might strengthen its naval presence in the Arabian maritime and Gulf of Aden to protect maritime lines of communication (SLOC).

— While retaining links with the Middle East, India must boost its Strategic Petroleum Reserves (SPR) and enhance energy imports from alternate sources such as Russia, Africa, and Latin America.

— India is expanding beyond buyer-seller ties to establish long-term interdependence, such as the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) with the UAE. The government is supporting UPI-based remittance routes to safeguard financial inflows from the Gulf’s large Indian diaspora.

Conclusion:

— This transition necessitates a fundamental rethinking of India’s position within West Asia. First, to ensure the structural cohesion of a system that effectively merges South Asia and the Middle East, New Delhi must champion minilateral formats that include the region’s primary anchors: the UAE, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, and Qatar. Second, India must move beyond viewing the Gulf states through the antiquated lens of labour and capital. These nations are no longer just destinations for the Indian diaspora or sources of sovereign wealth; they are also strategic hubs for Indian investment and high-tech innovation. Third, there is a need to return to cultural and religious co-existence. A West Asian order cannot be built on AI, infrastructure, and capital alone; it requires a baseline of social stability.

(Source: Why India must step up amid West Asia’s turbulence, In the return of West Asia, India cannot remain on the margins)

Points to Ponder

How can instability in West Asia shift global trade and investment flows toward India?

How can initiatives like IMEC or port connectivity enhance India’s role?

Related Previous Year Questions

“Energy security constitutes the dominant kingpin of India’s foreign policy, and is linked with India’s overarching influence in Middle Eastern countries.” How would you integrate energy security with India’s foreign policy trajectories in the coming years? (2025)

Previous Mains Answer Practice

UPSC Essentials: Mains answer practice — GS 3 (Week 146)

UPSC Essentials: Mains answer practice — GS 3 (Week 147)

UPSC Essentials: Mains answer practice — GS 2 (Week 146)

UPSC Essentials: Mains answer practice — GS 2 (Week 145)

UPSC Essentials: Mains answer practice — GS 1 (Week 146)

UPSC Essentials: Mains answer practice — GS 1 (Week 145)

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