Paper II — Q5
(a) Explain the major features of India's Foreign Policy in the 21st century. 10 (b) What are the reasons for lack of…
Answer the following questions in about 150 words each:
Explain the major features of India's Foreign Policy in the 21st century. 10 marks
What are the reasons for lack of 'regionness' in South Asia ? 10 marks
Why is the compromise reached at WTO regarding the Covid-19 vaccine manufacturing not a Trade Related Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) waiver ? 10 marks
Why do ethnic conflicts and insurgencies continue to remain major impediments to regional co-operation in South Asia ? 10 marks
What diplomatic steps has India taken to articulate the interests of the Global South in International Politics ? 10 marks
हिंदी में प्रश्न पढ़ें
निम्नलिखित प्रत्येक प्रश्न का उत्तर लगभग 150 शब्दों में दीजिए :
21वीं सदी में भारत की विदेश नीति की प्रमुख विशेषताओं की व्याख्या कीजिए । 10
दक्षिण एशिया में 'क्षेत्रीयता' की कमी के क्या कारण हैं ? 10 अंक
कोविड-19 वैक्सीन के निर्माण को लेकर डब्ल्यू.टी.ओ. में हुआ समझौता व्यापार संबंधी बौद्धिक संपदा अधिकार (टी.आर.आई.पी.एस.) में छूट क्यों नहीं है ? 10 अंक
दक्षिण एशिया में जातिगत संघर्ष और विद्रोह क्षेत्रीय सहयोग में प्रमुख बाधाएँ क्यों बने हुए हैं ? 10 अंक
अंतर्राष्ट्रीय राजनीति में वैश्विक दक्षिण के हितों की रक्षा करने के लिए भारत ने कौन-से कूटनीतिक कदम उठाए हैं ? 10 अंक
Model answer
Drafted with AI by UPSC Answer Check against this question's marking rubric, to the 150-word length. UPSC does not publish answers for Mains — this is one way to score well, not an official key. How we build rubrics and answers.
(a) Major Features of India's Foreign Policy in the 21st Century
In the 21st century, India's foreign policy has transformed from non-alignment to dynamic multi-alignment, anchored in strategic autonomy. This enables New Delhi to pursue issue-based coalitions across competing geopolitical poles, engaging simultaneously in the QUAD, BRICS, and the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO). Regionally, policy execution is driven by the Neighbourhood First approach to foster connectivity and mutual trust, coupled with the Act East Policy to integrate deeply with the Indo-Pacific economic and security architecture. Economic diplomacy has become central, focusing on securing foreign capital, critical technology, and integration into global value chains. India also asserts normative leadership through ambitious climate commitments, such as the International Solar Alliance and Mission LiFE, while actively leveraging its global diaspora as an instrument of soft power and economic partnership.
(b) Reasons for Lack of 'Regionness' in South Asia
Regionness—a concept developed by Björn Hettne and Fredrik Söderbaum for the degree to which a geographic space functions as an integrated economic, political and cultural unit with a shared identity—remains underdeveloped in South Asia due to deep structural frictions. The core impediment is the enduring India-Pakistan structural rivalry, which has effectively paralyzed the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC). This gridlock is exacerbated by an acute power asymmetry, where India’s disproportionate size and economic weight generate perpetual hegemonistic anxieties among smaller neighbours. Consequently, unresolved territorial disputes and cross-border security dilemmas take precedence over geo-economic integration, keeping intra-regional trade at a dismal sub-5 percent of total trade. Furthermore, extra-regional interference, particularly China’s strategic and economic ingress through the Belt and Road Initiative, allows smaller littoral and Himalayan states to hedge against India, fracturing regional consensus and institutional coherence.
(c) Compromise at WTO Regarding Covid-19 Vaccines vs. TRIPS Waiver
The compromise reached at the 12th WTO Ministerial Conference (MC12) in June 2022 does not constitute a true Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) waiver. India and South Africa had originally proposed, in October 2020, a comprehensive waiver under Article IX of the WTO Agreement, demanding a broad suspension of patent rights, industrial designs, copyrights, and undisclosed information across all Covid-19 medical products. In contrast, the MC12 outcome merely grants a temporary, five-year relaxation of procedural requirements for issuing compulsory licenses under TRIPS Article 31, specifically waiving export restrictions under Article 31(f). This compromise is fundamentally an administrative streamlining within the existing intellectual property regime rather than a substantive suspension of monopolies. Crucially, it is confined exclusively to vaccines, omitting the diagnostics and therapeutics indispensable for comprehensive pandemic response; members were to decide on extending it to these within six months but failed to agree. Developing countries with existing vaccine capacity were also encouraged to opt out, and by the time it was adopted global vaccine supply had largely caught up, so the decision was little used.
(d) Ethnic Conflicts and Insurgencies as Impediments to Regional Cooperation
Ethnic conflicts and insurgencies impede South Asian cooperation by continually securitizing borders and sustaining interstate mistrust. The mismatch between colonial border demarcations and shared ethno-cultural geography makes domestic identity struggles transnationally volatile. The historic Tamil conflict generated long-standing frictions between India and Sri Lanka, culminating in the costly Indian Peace Keeping Force deployment of 1987-90, while the ongoing Rohingya crisis has produced acute bilateral and regional tensions among Myanmar, Bangladesh, and India due to massive refugee burdens and national security concerns. In India’s Northeast, insurgent outfits have historically exploited porous international borders to establish cross-border sanctuaries in Myanmar and Bangladesh (e.g., Naga, Mizo, and Kuki linkages). Because states view border areas primarily through the lens of counter-insurgency and sovereignty, security dilemmas prevent the realization of open border regimes, transit corridors, and integrated regional supply chains.
(e) India's Diplomatic Articulation of Global South Interests
India has actively utilized multilateral platforms to voice the economic, financial, and institutional concerns of the Global South. A major step was convening the Voice of Global South Summit in January 2023, directly channeling the priorities of about 125 developing nations into its G20 Presidency, followed by further editions in November 2023 and August 2024. India leveraged this presidency to secure permanent G20 membership for the African Union, push for multilateral development bank reforms, advance sovereign debt relief mechanisms, and advocate for Sustainable Development Goal localization. Operationally, India sustains South-South cooperation through the IBSA Fund and the India-UN Development Partnership Fund, financing demand-driven developmental projects. During the pandemic, India countered vaccine nationalism by supplying Indian-manufactured COVISHIELD vaccines to developing countries under the Vaccine Maitri initiative. In global climate negotiations, India continues to defend the principle of Common But Differentiated Responsibilities and Respective Capabilities (CBDR-RC).
How this answer will be evaluated
Framework: Concept > Theory and theorist > Application > Critique
What earns full marks: Demonstrates strong theoretical grounding, specific examples, and clear analytical structure.
Evaluation rubric
Each sub-part is marked on its own, against the marks and word limit printed on the paper.
- (a) Explain the major features of India's foreign policy in the 21st century. 10 marks · 150 words
explain— definition/context → points in order → small example → short close
Must cover
- Multi-alignment and strategic autonomy: shift from non-alignment, working with all major powers
- 'Neighbourhood First' (2014) and 'Act East' (2014); 'Link West'
- Indian Ocean and Indo-Pacific: SAGAR (2015; MAHASAGAR 2025), Quad
- Economic diplomacy, energy security and the diaspora; Global South voice and Vaccine Maitri
Loses marks
- Listing policies without theoretical context
- Ignoring the shift from non-alignment
- Focusing only on bilateral relations
Earns more
- Concept of 'Vishwaguru'
- 'Look West/Link West' policy
- Vaccine Maitri initiative (2021)
- Indo-Pacific strategy and the Quad
Extra mark
- SAGAR concept
- Vaccine Maitri
- (b) Account for the lack of 'regionness' in South Asia. 10 marks · 150 words
account for— state the phenomenon → the causes in order of weight → conclusion
Must cover
- India-Pakistan rivalry and Kashmir; security dilemma; nuclearisation since 1998
- India's asymmetric size and hegemony, small States' fears, border disputes (Bangladesh, Nepal), river waters (Indus, Ganga)
- Weak economic interdependence: intra-regional trade about 5%; SAARC (1985) limits - bilateral issues barred (Charter Art X), SAPTA/SAFTA limited, no summit since Kathmandu 2014; alternatives BIMSTEC, BBIN
- Identity and politics: fragile States, internal conflicts, external powers (China, US), no shared regional identity (constructivist view)
Loses marks
- Ignoring the India-Pakistan factor
- Focusing only on economic factors
- Lack of theoretical framework
Earns more
- SAARC dysfunction: 2016 Islamabad summit cancelled after Uri
- Realist explanation of regional order; Buzan-Wæver regional security complex
- Nuclear deterrence and crises (Kargil 1999)
- Constructivist view: competing national identities; Partition legacy
Extra mark
- Collective action problem and absence of a 'paymaster' leader
- The concept of regionness (Hettne and Söderbaum)
- (c) Comment on why the WTO compromise on Covid-19 vaccine manufacturing is not a TRIPS waiver. 10 marks · 150 words
comment— context → arguments both sides → judgment → close
Must cover
- TRIPS (1994) Arts 27, 28, 31 and the 2001 Doha Declaration on public health: flexibilities such as compulsory licensing already exist
- India-South Africa proposal (IP/C/W/669, October 2020): complete waiver of TRIPS obligations (patents, copyright, designs, undisclosed information) for Covid-19 vaccines, therapeutics and diagnostics
- MC12 Geneva, June 2022 Ministerial Decision: clarifies and eases Art 31 for patents only; vaccines only; eligible developing members; five years; no waiver under Art IX:3 of the Marrakesh Agreement
- Why not a waiver: a waiver suspends obligations; the decision only streamlines compulsory licensing (no need to specify product or quantity, no individual negotiation, exports allowed); excludes therapeutics, diagnostics and trade secrets/know-how; pharma lobbying; critics call it 'TRIPS-minus', not a waiver
Loses marks
- Confusing waiver with licensing
- Ignoring the legal distinction
- Lack of specific WTO terminology
Earns more
- Voluntary licensing and technology transfer (e.g. Covishield: Oxford-AstraZeneca with the Serum Institute)
- Global South interests (MSF, WHO, C-TAP)
- Pharma industry concerns about innovation incentives
- Supply-chain and know-how bottlenecks
Extra mark
- Art 31bis and the Doha para 6 mechanism
- Compulsory licensing precedents (Natco v Bayer 2012)
- (d) Analyse why ethnic conflicts and insurgencies remain major impediments to regional cooperation in South Asia. 10 marks · 150 words
analyse— intro → causes → effects → stakeholders/linkages → way forward
Must cover
- Contested nation-building in multi-ethnic States: Sri Lanka (LTTE, 1983-2009), Pakistan (Balochistan, TTP), Afghanistan, Nepal (Maoist insurgency 1996-2006, Madhesi), Bangladesh (CHT), India (North-East, J&K, Left-wing extremism)
- Cross-border spillover: refugees (Tamils, Rohingya, Afghans), ethnic kinship (Tamil Nadu-Sri Lanka, Madhesi-India), arms and sanctuaries; accusations of backing insurgents (India-Pakistan; India-Sri Lanka 1987 IPKF)
- State weakness and mistrust: securitised outlook, bilateral suspicion, terrorism (Mumbai 2008) - the SAARC Convention on Terrorism (1987) weakly implemented; no counter-terror cooperation
- Result: the security agenda overrides economic integration; trade and connectivity blocked; way forward - sub-regional (BBIN, BIMSTEC), CBMs, inclusive governance
Loses marks
- Generalizing without specific examples
- Ignoring the state's role
- Lack of causal analysis
Earns more
- Naxalism in India
- Taliban in Afghanistan
- Maoism in Nepal
- Separatism in Sri Lanka (LTTE)
Extra mark
- SAARC Regional Convention on Suppression of Terrorism (1987) and Additional Protocol (2004)
- Indo-Sri Lanka Accord 1987 and the IPKF
- (e) Highlight the diplomatic steps India has taken to articulate the interests of the Global South. 10 marks · 150 words
highlight— name the salient points → one line of substance each → close
Must cover
- Voice of Global South Summits (from January 2023) and India's G20 presidency 2023: New Delhi Declaration, permanent membership of the African Union, development and climate-finance agenda
- BRICS expansion (2024) and India's role; IBSA, G-77; South-South cooperation: ITEC, lines of credit, Development Partnership Administration (2012)
- Advocacy on climate justice and equity: CBDR, International Solar Alliance (2015), Mission LiFE, CDRI; vaccine equity: Vaccine Maitri (2021), push for a TRIPS waiver
- Demand for reform of the UN, IMF and World Bank, UNSC reform; Global Biofuels Alliance; sharing Digital Public Infrastructure
Loses marks
- Listing steps without substance
- Ignoring the 'Global South' focus
- Lack of specific diplomatic initiatives
Earns more
- Vaccine equity: Vaccine Maitri, COVAX supplies
- Development agenda: ITEC, lines of credit to Africa, Pan-African e-Network
- Support for multilateralism and UN reform
- South-South cooperation; IBSA Fund
Extra mark
- G20 New Delhi Declaration 2023
- BRICS expansion in 2024
What "Explain" is asking you to do
Make the working of something clear — what sets it off, what follows from what, and what it produces. Explain is the Commission's mechanism word: it dominates the technical papers and the “explain why” stems, where the marks sit in the causal chain and not in the label.
Structure that answers it
State what it is → the initiating condition → the chain of cause, step by step → an instance where it plays out → what the chain produces
Where marks are lost
Describing what something looks like instead of why it works that way. Naming the stages without linking them reads as description too.
Practice this exact question
Write your answer and it is marked point by point against the model answer above — what you covered, what you missed, what you got wrong.
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