India has always enjoyed immense goodwill in Afghanistan, our civilisational neighbour. This is true even now, when Kabul has again come under Taliban rule. Sadly, many Indians, influenced by the western media narrative, view the Taliban as jihadi terrorists. When a defeated America withdrew its troops from Afghanistan in August 2021, paving the way for a quick takeover of power by the Taliban, they saw it as a catastrophe for India. Having convinced themselves that the Taliban were a mere puppet created and controlled by Pakistan, they anticipated a spurt in joint Pakistan-Taliban terror offensives against India.
The four-year-old Taliban rule in Kabul has belied these fears. If anything, relations between Kabul and Islamabad have been tense. When I met Suhail Shaheen, a senior Taliban leader who headed the Doha political office of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, in February 2024, he said, “India should shed the suspicion that the Taliban is ‘close to Pakistan’ and ‘against India’. Our government is firmly committed to the principle that we shall not allow anybody to use our soil against India or any other country.” I have met several Taliban officials since then, and all of them have expressed the same view.
There is a belated realisation in New Delhi that the current government in Kabul should not be treated as an adversary and that it can even be an important ally. This has resulted in a flurry of diplomatic contacts over the past year. When External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar phoned his Afghan counterpart Amir Khan Muttaqi on May 15, and “deeply appreciated his condemnation of the Pahalgam terrorist attack,” it marked the highest-level communication between Delhi and Kabul.
Yet, New Delhi is tardy in elevating the ties with Kabul. On July 3, Russia became the first country to formally recognise the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan. China, the UAE and Uzbekistan have designated ambassadors to Kabul. Beijing hosted a trilateral meeting of the foreign ministers of China, Afghanistan and Pakistan in May; the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor will now be extended to Afghanistan. India, too, should establish normal ambassadorial relations with Afghanistan without any delay.
Afghanistan is changing, and will change even more. After suffering deaths and destruction on an unimaginable scale in four decades of war—first by the Soviet Union and later by the USA—it is now focused on peace and national reconstruction. Recognising that the country’s diaspora is a precious resource, the Taliban want to create conditions for the return of over one million highly-talented Afghan professionals who left the country due to the disturbed conditions of the past. Some Taliban leaders are themselves demanding an end to the ban on female education. Against this backdrop, India must hurry to expand all-round engagement with this strategically located member of our South Asian family. Here are eight ideas on how India can help in Afghanistan’s national rebirth.
‘Saudi Arabia of lithium’: Prime Minister Narendra Modi should ask both our state-run and private companies to participate in Afghanistan’s infrastructure development and rapid industrialisation. Alleviating its acute power shortage should be a priority. Afghanistan, known as the ‘Saudi Arabia of lithium’, is ready to invite Indian businesses to harness its fabulous mineral wealth of copper and rare earths worth several trillion dollars. This should be done in non-exploitative and win-win ways, in partnership with Afghan entrepreneurs.
Livelihoods: India should share its expertise in revitalising Afghanistan’s agriculture, horticulture and small industries. These have the highest potential to create local livelihoods. The Taliban government has taken stern measures to stop poppy cultivation in a crackdown on the opium and heroin trade. Although the whole world has benefited from this, it has also robbed many farmers of their previous sources of income. They need help.
Education & health: India should remove all visa restrictions on Afghan people who want to travel to our cities for medical treatment, education, trade and business. For example, there were as many 11,000 Afghan students in India (35 percent of them women) until a decade ago. Today, the number is negligible. Due to lack of medical facilities, Afghan patients spend over $1 billion on treatment abroad. The Taliban government is ready to incentivise Indian companies to establish hospitals and pharmaceutical factories. It also seeks Indian help in teacher-training at its universities.
‘Divyang’ seva: Four decades of war has left over 1.5 million disabled people in Afghanistan. India’s ‘Jaipur Foot’ organisation, founded by D R Mehta, a respected former Sebi chairman, has earned widespread reputation in Afghanistan by providing artificial limbs to thousands of people. India’s corporate-funded philanthropic bodies should help such organisations in offering ‘divyang’ seva to Afghans.
Cricket: Cooperation in sports, cricket in particular, has enormous potential to bring Indians and Afghans closer. Rashid Khan, Azmatullah Omarzai and other IPL players have become household names among cricket-lovers in India. Afghans are grateful to the BCCI and IPL for their support in developing the country’s cricket. Such cooperation should be extended by grooming promising young Afghans in football, wrestling and other sports. How about the Indian government asking the cash-rich BCCI to build a world-class cricket stadium in Kabul?
Trade: After the recent India-Pakistan military clash, trade between India and Afghanistan has been badly hit with the closure of the Attari-Wagah land route. Efforts should be made to re-open this route. Simultaneously, there is a need to accelerate development of the India-Iran-Afghanistan route through Chabahar port.
People’s diplomacy: The Taliban diplomats I have met attach great importance to enhancing people-to-people interactions to promote mutual trust. One of them said: “There are hardly any meetings between high-ranking Indian and Afghan politicians. They should meet frequently. There should also be regular exchanges between scholars, journalists, strategic experts, socio-cultural leaders and captains of business and industry.”
SAARC: Regional cooperation, including through SAARC’s revitalisation, is of paramount importance in Afghanistan’s national reconstruction. It is the responsibility of India, China and all other regional countries (including Pakistan) to assist Afghanistan in all possible ways. For such efforts to succeed, regional countries must desist from bringing their competition and rivalries onto Afghan soil. Like Vietnam, Afghanistan has wisely decided to build friendly ties with all countries in the world. This decision should be respected.
Surely, the time is ripe to infuse new vitality into an age-old relationship that is critical for the future of both India and Afghanistan.
Sudheendra Kulkarni | Gandhian peace activist and aide to former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee
(Views are personal)