Anil K Kanungo: Sino-Indian ties: converging points

The visit of Chinese premier Wen Jiabao to India has provided an air hope and confidence.

This is being felt because the overall relationship has achieved a higher level of understanding and cooperation with the successful conclusion of the G-20 meeting in New Delhi (March 18 and 19), where both India and China played a crucial role in chalking out a future strategy to take Doha negotiations forward.

Besides, both being economic giants, they have the potential to do better, and their prospects could improve further if the two sign a free trade agreement.

The current bilateral trade worth $ 13 billion shows that the future growth could be immense and lies in establishing more cooperative ventures. All this indicates that the proverbial Hindi-Chini bhai bhai may after all be possible.

In an interdependent world, especially in the new millennium, trade and trade relations between and among countries hold the key to success holistically, that is, to provide both economic and political stability to a country.

Engaging in the reforms process almost at the same time, China with its clear-cut planning, sequencing of reforms, building of a world-class infrastructure, and projecting immense sense of political stability, has managed to stun the world with its economic success.

It has established a hassle-free economic climate by which it has been able to attract foreign direct investment (FDI) to the tune of $ 60 billion compared to India's $ 4 billion, raising its annual export earnings to seven times that of India's and keeping its foreign exchange reserves at $ 610 billion, more than five times that of India's.

These statistics may look enviable to India, but they are possible, provided we adopt the right policies. The idea is to emulate the successful Chinese model. The spirit should not be that of competition but cooperation.

There are many areas where the two countries can come together to foster a spirit of cooperation and collaboration. India has inherent and developed strengths in many areas, such as good institutional framework for macro-management of finances, services including computer software, and pharmaceutical research and production.

China has already acquired exceptional skills in infrastructural development, manufacturing, including computer hardware, and export capabilities.

The two countries can work together in all these areas. Especially in the field of IT, India with its world-renowned software skills and China with its vastly developed and advanced hardware sector can become a formidable force.

With the combined population of the two countries being one-third of the total world population, developing and augmenting bilateral trade between the two countries by itself can set the future standards for globalisation.

A unique area of cooperation and collaboration would be linking up India's ambitious river-linking project with that of China's.

India should try looking at river projects such as the taming of mighty Yangtze river with the help of state of the art technology by diverting water from Yangtze up the north to India, which could alleviate the desertification and drought occurring at regular interval in the large parts of India.

With the opening up of trade and commerce between the two countries, many Indian companies "" such as Ranbaxy Laboratories, Aurobindo Pharma, Lupin Laboratories, DCM Shriram and others "" have established their operations in China.

Likewise, Chinese companies such as Huawei and Haier Technologies have also set up their operation bases in India.

To promote such trade between the two, there is a need to know each other's language, culture, habits and habitats, and all these can be developed only when more and more scientific and cultural collaborations and exchange of students between universities and research institutions take place.

More so in a globalised world, where local culture acts as a conduit between the local consumer and foreign trader. It's good that both the leaders in their meeting have realised its importance and given impetus to this issue by signing the joint declaration.

Even in the field of alternative medicine the two countries enjoy a strong tradition. Ayurveda and acupuncture can help cure many dreadful diseases.

Recently acupuncture and the alternative medicine system of China provided some vital clues to the cure and eradication of SARS, the epidemic that rocked the entire country.

Both the countries can promote each other's alternative medicine systems through collaborative efforts in terms of research, and ultimately developing a unique medicine system in the world.

Recognising the Nathu-la Pass in Sikkim as a border pass between the two countries, the long standing irritant in the border dispute has come to an end.

China's implicit recognition of Sikkim as an inalienable part of India has provided further authenticity to this border pass.

All these cooperative and collaborative measures need to be pursued in the right spirit. A lot depends on the two countries' leadership how they would like to steer the roadmap for themselves keeping in view region's peace and prosperity.

The current summit will hopefully set aside the differences between the two countries. The bottom line is: common interests of the two countries far outweigh their differences in this interdependent world.

(The writer is faculty member, India Institute of Foreign Trade, New Delhi)