Bhutan PM on 5 day India trip on his maiden visit abroad since reelection

Prime Minister of Bhutan, Tshering Tobgay will be on a five day visit to India to push cross border connectivity, energy and business initiatives. The visit is Prime Minister Tobgay’s first overseas visit after assuming office in January 2024.

The Minister of Foreign Affairs and External Trade, Minister of Energy and Natural Resources, Minister for Industry, Commerce and Employment and senior officials from the Royal Government of Bhutan will accompany the Prime Minister of Bhutan.

Tobgay is no stranger to India having worked closely with New Delhi in his first term as the PM.


India had started engaging with the new Bhutanese government as soon as it was elected, with foreign secretary Vinay Kwatra meeting Tobgay on the first day of his second term earlier this year.

Kwatra was on a three-day visit to Thimphu to engage with the new government to discuss new initiatives, including Bhutan's next five-year plan, fresh development support from the Indian government, and energy partnership and cross-border connectivity initiatives.

New Delhi has stepped up engagements with Thimphu, a move seen counterbalancing China's growing inroads in Bhutan, and has been observing the trajectory of ties, particularly the boundary talks.

The territorial dispute between Bhutan and China covers an area of about 764 sq km--269 sq km in western and 495 sq km in north-central Bhutan. In 2020, China also staked a claim on the Salting Wildlife Sanctuary in eastern Bhutan, which was rejected by Thimphu.

New Delhi is concerned over China’s claim over areas in the vicinity of Doklam in western Bhutan. In return, Beijing wants to narrow or give up its territorial claims in the north-central region of Bhutan.

Thimphu has assured New Delhi that it will not undermine India’s national interests while negotiating a boundary treaty with Beijing.

Bhutan’s King Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuk plans a mega city project near the Indian border -- the Gelephu Special Administration Region (SAR) – spread over 1,000 sq km. The project will link Bhutan economically with Assam and will help spur regional and sub-regional integration. Bhutan is eyeing Indian investments in Gelephu.

India and Bhutan are also planning to put in place a 58-km rail link between Gelephu and Kokrajhar in Assam. The possibility of an 18-km rail link between Samtse in Bhutan and Banarhat in West Bengal is also being explored.