The seductiveness of borders

Context: Borders are made sacrosanct through the various distinct socio-cultural, political and territorial aspects around the world. However, history teaches that borders are derived from realities and not autonomous facts.

Various dimensions of borders: Borders have been malleable and thus have been molded accordingly.

• Cultural and religious significance : 

• • • • The vedic period was restricted to northern India. Post-Vedic empires stretched further east to Bihar.
      • Adi Shankaracharya traveled to all corners of the “country” to establish places of devotional learning in the ninth century.
      • Free movement was ensured between different rules: For E.g. Pallavas in the south and Gurjara-Pratihara in the north facilitated the movement of Adi Shankaracharya.

• Political Significance: 

• The idea of the nation state: led to the personification of India as Bharatmata.

• Pre-Independence British political changes:

• Assam came within the national boundary in 1826 after the Indo-Burmese war in 1824.
• Darjeeling was leased from Sikkim (became a part of India in 1975) Chogyal in 1835 for setting up a sanatorium, 
• Kalimpong and the Dooars became part of Darjeeling after battle with Bhutan in 1865.

• Post-Independence:

• Unilateral Claims by India: Nehru ordered to print new maps showing all of Aksai Chin as Indian territory, while the Chinese had no better historical claim.

• Geographical dimension: Tawang tract in the Arunachal Pradesh fell south of the McMahon Lime only because of a convenient deviation from the watershed principle.
• Changing frontiers Around the world:
• Effect of World Wars: Europe, Italy and Germany did not exist as geographical entities till the second half of the 19th Century. Rise of the US and fall of the Soviet remarked several boundaries.
• Impact of Imperialism: Borders in West Asia and Africa have been arbitrarily drawn to suit the interests of imperialists.

• Set off long term conflicts between neighbors— For.E.g. the Kurds and the Pakhtoons.

• Change continued: in the 21st Century

• The Russian takeover of the Crimean Peninsula.
• States in Caucasus fighting over enclaves.
• China’s conversion of atolls in the South China Sea into military bases.

India’s Failure in dealing with border issues: 

• Avoiding the conflict: 
• India has been avoiding the conflict over territory by “making borders irrelevant”.
• The institutional restraint on aggression is weakening and unalloyed/autonomous powers are at play.