Today’s Issues in South Asia

Population Explosion  An estimated 42,000 babies are born each day in India.  15,330,000 babies are born each year in India.  On May 11, 2000 the population of India reached 1 billion!

Growing Pains  population of India was ~ 300 million.  Estimates for 2045, India will have a population of 1.5 billion with only a modest growth rate of 2%/year.  India’s land area: 1,195,063 sq. miles  U.S population: 318 million (2014) U.S. Land area: 3,787,319 square miles

Inadequate Resources  Widespread illiteracy  Poor sanitation  Lack of health education  Outbreaks of disease  Overwhelmed infrastructure

Immediate Needs  In order to keep pace with the current population growth rate, each year the Indian government will need to build:  127,000 new village schools  Hire nearly 400,000 teachers  Construct 2.5 million new homes  Create 4 million new jobs  Produce 6 million tons of food

Managing Population  Encouragement of smaller families (children often provide security for elderly parents)  High infant mortality rate 75/1000 births compared to U.S 7/1000 births- Families try to have many children to insure that some will reach adulthood.  Education: essential to break the cycle of poverty and provide a way for South Asians to improve their standard of living.

Trouble in Kashmir  1947, Britain partitioned the subcontinent based on religion:  Pakistan (East and West) -Muslim  India- Hindu  Nepal- Hindu  Bhutan – Buddhist  Kashmir??????

Politics and Religion  Kashmir- Mainly Muslim with a Hindu political leader, the Maharajah of Kashmir.  The maharajah tried to keep Kashmir independent but ended up ceding the region to India in  Pakistan invaded Kashmir because they believed that region actually belonged to them due to the large Muslim population.

Kashmir Conflict  Two wars have been fought over Kashmir in 1965 and  There is a current cease- fire but the situation is still unresolved.

Economics  The Indus river flows through Kashmir.  The river is vital for fresh drinking water and irrigation for Pakistan.  Neither side wants to give up control of the river

Skardu in the Northern Areas, is the point of departure for mountaineering expeditions in the Karakorams.

Nuclear Nightmare  1998, both India and Pakistan tested nuclear weapons. These tests shocked the world.  Under international pressure, both India and Pakistan vowed to solve the Kashmir dispute through diplomacy.

Cease-fire?  Despite the many cease-fires, there continues to be disputes along the border.  Both India and Pakistan have large populations in the region.  The money that they have spent on this conflict and the nuclear programs could have been used to educate millions of children and address many other social problems.