India, the world's most populous democracy, and Bhutan, among the world's youngest, share a special relationship that stretches beyond mere friendship, the Himalayan kingdom's 30-year-old monarch King Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck said here today.
At the 146th annual convocation of the University of Calcutta, where the young sovereign delivered the convocation address that was peppered with references to Mahatma Gandhi, he said, “I feel so much at home and among friends as I stand here today. After all, India is Bhutan’s closest neighbour and friend and beyond that, the great state of West Bengal has been Bhutan’s partner and comrade since time immemorial.”
Incidentally, an updated version of the Treaty of Friendship and Cooperation of 1949 — the bedrock of India-Bhutan bilateral relations — was signed in 2007 by King Jigme Khesar, two years after this father King Jigme Singye Wangchuk abdicated the throne. Moreover, subsequent to his official coronation in November 2008, King Jigme Khesar's first state visit was to India, when he signed 12 Memorandum of Understandings in areas such as hydro-power, IT, health/ medicine, narcotics, civil aviation, agriculture and environment.
India is Bhutan's largest trade partner. During 2008, imports from India amounted to Rs.17.33 billion and constituted 73.80 per cent of Bhutan’s total imports, while the country's exports to India in the same year amounted to Rs.21.48 billion and constituted 95 per cent of its total exports.
However, for the remaining part of the address, King Jigme Khesar outlined his perspective on a new development paradigm, perhaps mirroring the vision with which he is guiding Bhutan, which held its first general elections only in 2008.
“I hope we will realize that we are at the cusp of a fundamental change of thought – a social revolution that will change the way humanity will pursue growth forever. Our generation is called upon to rethink, to redefine the true purpose of growth. And in doing so, to find a growth that is truly sustainable,” he said.
