Railway Current Affairs

Partnership and India's Central Asia Strategy Why in News? Prime Minister Narendra Modi paid a State Visit to Uzbekistan on 29-30 August 2026, immediately before his scheduled participation in the 26th Shanghai Cooperation Organisation Summit in Bishkek, Kyrgyz Republic, from 31 August to 1 September 2026.

Elevation to a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership signals that cooperation will no longer remain confined to diplomatic goodwill. India and Uzbekistan agreed to work towards a US$5-billion bilateral trade target by 2030 and to organise a Business Summit to deepen investment ties. Both sides also agreed to improve e-commerce, digitisation of trade procedures and support for small and medium enterprises.

For examination purposes, Central Asia generally refers to five former Soviet republics: Kazakhstan, Kyrgyz Republic, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan. Country Capital Important feature Kazakhstan Astana Largest Central Asian country; major uranium producer Kyrgyz Republic Bishkek Mountainous; Tian Shan range Tajikistan Dushanbe Pamir region; borders Afghanistan Turkmenistan Ashgabat Major natural-gas reserves Uzbekistan Tashkent Most centrally located; major political and demographic centre Uzbekistan has a particularly interesting geographical distinction: it is double-landlocked - every country surrounding it is itself landlocked. The only other double-landlocked sovereign state is Liechtenstein.

Central Asia possesses major reserves of oil, natural gas and uranium. Kazakhstan is one of the world's major uranium producers, while Turkmenistan has enormous natural-gas reserves. Uzbekistan also possesses uranium and important mineral resources. For an energy-importing country such as India, diversification of suppliers is strategically valuable.

The global transition towards batteries, electronics, renewable energy and advanced defence technologies has increased geopolitical competition over critical minerals. Central Asia contains substantial deposits of uranium, rare metals and other mineral resources. India's August 2026 discussion with Uzbekistan therefore places critical minerals beside conventional energy in the bilateral agenda.

Central Asia is no longer simply a Russian sphere of influence. China has acquired enormous economic influence through the Belt and Road Initiative. Türkiye, Gulf countries, the European Union, United States and Japan have also expanded engagement. The Central Asian republics increasingly pursue multi-vector foreign policies. India therefore provides another strategic option.

India's Central Asia ambitions are limited primarily by connectivity. The International North-South Transport Corridor (INSTC) is a multimodal network connecting India with Iran, the Caspian region, Russia, Central Asia and ultimately European markets. Goods can move from Indian ports towards Iran and then through rail, road and maritime routes towards Eurasia.

China enjoys a structural advantage because it directly borders Central Asia. Through the Belt and Road Initiative, pipelines, railways, roads, mining projects and trade, Beijing has established deep economic influence. India cannot realistically compete with China kilometre-for-kilometre in continental infrastructure. India's strategy must therefore be asymmetric: concentrate on areas where it possesses comparative advantages - pharmaceuticals, education, capacity-building, digital public infrastructure, healthcare, IT, defence training and cultural links.

India should move from a largely aspirational 'connect' policy towards a project-based Central Asia strategy. Connectivity projects through Chabahar and the INSTC must be combined with logistics agreements, customs digitisation and reliable shipping schedules.

With reference to India-Central Asia relations, consider the following: (1) Uzbekistan is a double-landlocked country. (2) India announced its Connect Central Asia Policy at Bishkek. (3) Chabahar Port provides India with an alternative route towards Central Asia bypassing Pakistan. (4) The headquarters of the SCO Regional Anti-Terrorist Structure is located in Tashkent. Answer: All four statements are correct.

Bihar's Water Security Why in News? The 1996 India-Bangladesh Ganga/Ganges Water Sharing Treaty, commonly called the Farakka Treaty, completes its thirty-year term on 12 December 2026.

For Bangladesh, the Ganga becomes the Padma, and dry-season flows are important for irrigation, fisheries, navigation, ecosystems and controlling salinity intrusion farther downstream. For India, water is required for the Hooghly system as well as the enormous agricultural, drinking-water and industrial requirements of the Ganga basin states.

Bihar is an upstream state relative to Farakka and is traversed by one of India's densest river systems. The Ganga runs west to east through the state and receives major Himalayan and peninsular tributaries. Important Bihar rivers include the Kosi, Gandak, Bagmati, Burhi Gandak, Kamla-Balan, Mahananda, Son and Punpun.

Political discussion in Bihar often links Farakka with sediment accumulation, reduced river gradient and a possible backwater effect. However, an examination answer should avoid reducing Bihar's extremely complex flood problem to one structure alone.

The Ganga cannot be understood only as an India-Bangladesh river. Several of Bihar's most important rivers originate in or pass through Nepal. India and Nepal manage flood and river issues through bilateral mechanisms including the Joint Team on Flood Forecasting on common rivers, the Joint Committee on Kosi and Gandak Projects, Joint Committee on Inundation and Flood Management, and Joint Committee on Water Resources.

Under the Constitution, Entry 17 of the State List covers water, water supplies, irrigation, canals, drainage, embankments, water storage and water power, subject to Union List Entry 56. Entry 56 of the Union List empowers Parliament to regulate and develop inter-State rivers and river valleys when such regulation in the public interest is declared expedient.

Modern river governance increasingly emphasises equitable and reasonable utilisation, avoidance of significant transboundary harm, exchange of hydrological information, prior consultation, ecosystem protection and cooperative basin management. A strong future Ganga arrangement should therefore move beyond a rigid volumetric division and include ecological and climatic dimensions.

A river cannot be treated as a pipeline whose entire flow is divided among users. Some water must remain within the river to maintain aquatic biodiversity; sediment transport; channel morphology; fisheries; wetland connectivity; groundwater recharge; water quality; and estuarine ecology. This is called environmental flow or e-flow.

The Hilsa, Tenualosa ilisha, is a migratory fish strongly associated with the Ganga-Padma-Meghna system. Historically, Hilsa travelled from the Bay of Bengal far upstream into the Ganga. The commissioning of Farakka significantly disrupted its migratory pathway, contributing to its sharp decline in the middle and upper Ganga.

As of June 2026, the Namami Gange Programme had generated approximately 4,263 MLD of sewage-treatment capacity. According to the CPCB's 2025 polluted-river-stretch assessment cited by the government, the Ganga's main stem showed improvement in several areas, though a polluted stretch remained in Bihar around the Bhagalpur downstream-Kahalgaon downstream region under Priority V.

Bangladesh, as the downstream country, is particularly sensitive to dry-season flow. Lower freshwater discharge can influence irrigation, navigation, fisheries, groundwater interactions and salinity in downstream areas. India therefore faces a delicate diplomatic task. It must safeguard Bihar and other domestic basin-state requirements without undermining its broader strategic relationship with Bangladesh.

Bangladesh is crucial for India's Northeast connectivity; Bay of Bengal strategy; counterterrorism cooperation; electricity trade; river management; coastal security; BIMSTEC policy; and subregional integration. Consequently, water diplomacy should not become a zero-sum contest. A successful treaty would strengthen India's image as a responsible upper riparian while also protecting legitimate domestic requirements.

A fixed or semi-fixed flow-sharing formula becomes difficult when rainfall and river discharge become more variable. A more modern system could incorporate dynamic hydrological triggers. Allocation rules might respond to actual basin rainfall, reservoir levels, soil moisture, snowmelt, groundwater stress and observed discharge.

Real-time hydrological data is one of the most important forms of transboundary confidence-building. India and Bangladesh should expand automated measurement of rainfall, river discharge, sediment load, groundwater levels, salinity, water quality and ecological indicators.