A Comparative Analysis Of Social And Economic Development Indicators In India And Bhutan

Abstract

The friendship between India and Bhutan is not a new one. Apart from sharing a common boundary, the two nations share a history of rich culture and heritage. There exists friendly relation between Bhutan and India as per bilateral treaty of 1949. Both India and Bhutan  being one of the founder members of the SAARC, they  try to promote meaningful bilateral and multi- lateral trade relations. The friendly relations between the two countries have been going on since long and are strengthening further with the passage of time. However, the two countries differ in their outlook towards growth and development in the modern times. India is doing well as far as attracting foreign investment is concerned but Bhutan is strengthening its culture, working towards a healthy, happy and a clean environment. They believe that without happiness, moral and ethical values economic growth is just a number and wouldn’t last long. Their approach to development is a more balanced one. Instead of the 3 P’s of India (Public Private Partnership) their focus is on People Progress and Participation. What needs to be learnt from one another are ways of economic achievements which are concentrating on societal, moral and ethical values and how important in today’s time is the need to take preserve the rich roots of one’s own culture. Going by the strategic location of these two countries, good governance is required to achieve social and economic goals domestically and to achieve the growth targets in this era of increased globalization and privatization. Research Methodology: The trading history of the two nations is compared based on secondary data collected from the Embassy of India, in Thimpu, Bhutan. The indicators used for understanding the growth aspect of the two nations, are GNI Per Capita, HDI and GNH. The source used for the same would be World Bank Data reports for the year 2014-15. The other sources for making comparisons based on social factors are The SAARC Reports, 2013& the UNDP Human Development Reports, 2016.The data taken from the World Happiness Report, 2017, will be studied and analysis of the reasons behind the social and economic indicators will be put forth.