About Nepal - By Praveen, Kerala, India

Hi Bhupendra, I have kept it pretty simple and brief considering my time constraints. I hope it has some value.

The first thing that comes to my mind about Nepal is the warm, friendly nature of the people. Nepalis can be found in just about every corner of India and their nature is all for you to see. Unlike people from a few other neighbouring nations(which I wouldn't like to name here), the Nepalis have integrated into society and have not de-stabilized the local society.

The second thing is the culture, very similar and closely linked with the ancient civilization of Bharat(India). No wonder just about every Indian would readily ask why Nepal is not a part of India. In midst of all the pseudo-secularism and minority appeasement policies in India, it is refreshing to see a nation openly declaring their nation as a Hindu state and keeping its secular credentials intact. India can learn from Nepal in this regard by stopping vote bank politics and recognizing the glorious past.

The third thing is the land-locked, mountaineous terrain of the nation. Majority of the tallest peaks on the planet come from this part of the world. It is also a strategic location between India and China, two of the world's future superpowers.

Nepal has a similar road like most SAARC nations as it belongs to the LDC (Less developed nations) club. Nepal can follow the India path in opening up the economy steadily to foreign players and at the same time encouraging competition among the domestic players which together would help in large-scale employment and improving the quality of products/goods and the lives of people.

Nepal can take multilateral trade paths via USA, China, EU etc. But, the most important trade partner will always be India for the foreseeable future. SAFTA and the SAARC Economic Union would help the entire SAARC region, which means Nepal too would benefit. Sure, India will gain a lot from the SAARC Union, considering its size. However, taking a long-term view, it is in the interests of SAARC nations and Nepal to be stronger economically so that the world doesn't look at this part of the world as just people with a begging bowl.

I think India should enhance its military co-operation with Nepal despite the recent fallout vis-a-vis the King seizing the power. Despite democracy being mandatory, it was a blatant error by India's foreign minister(at that time) to sideline Nepal and threatening India's own national security in the process. This has invited China to supply arms equipment to Nepal. China has already used Pakistan and Bangladesh to de-stabilize the South Asian region. It would be a nightmare to see Nepal being used as a football by China and inviting wrath from India. Also, the Maoist insurgency in Nepal is also a major concern as the naxalites in India have a close nexus with their counterparts in Nepal. Both of them linking up even more would de-stabilize both the nations.

For a developed Nepal to be a reality, it has to get its basics in place. It should invest more in education, health care, infrastructure like roads, communication etc. It should encourage more trade with India and SAARC and get benefit from the rapid growth in the Indian economy. It should not sideline its traditional sectors like agriculture in this process and can work with India considering its experience in large-scale rural schemes. The main focus area should be eco-tourism considering Nepal's Himalayan terrain and its culture. For that, there should be political stability and better economic climate. The King's role should only be ceremonial like in UK or in some states of India. He should not interfere in politics no matter what the situation is.

Finally, on a personal note I would like to say that I belong to the Nair caste, common in the southern Indian state of Kerala. Nairs are not indigenous to Kerala and are claimed to be early descendants of the Newars of Nepal, who were then part of the larger Kshatriya community of Bharat. The style of pagoda-like temple architecture and house construction (Tharavaadus) of Nairs are almost identical with the Newar style of temples and houses found all along the valleys of Kulu and Nepal. In the mode of inheritance, the Newars are like the Nairs. There is the Marumakkathaayam system of inheritance, which is a matrilineal system.

This is just another indicator of the shared ancient civilization of Bharat.