Union Budget 2022 gives MEA funds for Taliban-ruled Afghanistan

The budget has allocated funds for projects related to Afghanistan. The External Ministry (MEA) will have a crore ₹ 200 to spend on the country. It will also dedicate ₹ 600 Crore for Myanmar, which is currently staggering under the civil war since the military coup February 2021. Bhutan, as usual, has received the biggest allocation with ₹ 2266.24 Crore.

It is important that India has no diplomatic presence in Kabul, where the embassy remains closed since the Taliban took over in August. Afghanistan has been the recipient of a steady Indian grant for the past two decades and the government of President Ashraf Ghani last year received around ₹ 348 crore. India has exhibited its aid to Afghanistan as a assistance oriented, which focuses on development projects in the field.

Over the past two months, India has sent several consignments of medicine and humanitarian assistance to Afghanistan. Large-scale wheat consignments are expected to be sent to Kabul in the coming weeks. Allocation is expected to be spent on similar assistance during the year.

Allocation for Myanmar continues to have not changed because the MEA has received the same allocation last year for the country. India has maintained diplomatic contact with a torn country and foreign secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla visited Myanmar last year and urged to end violence by all parties.

MEA Allocation for Mongolia, North Chinese neighbor, has increased significantly by ₹ 2 Crore to ₹ 12 Crore. From promoting traditional Indian drugs to cleanse energy, both parties in talks for several cooperation projects that tend to receive support from an increase in allocations. Apart from it, ₹ 3100 crores have been allocated for “special diplomatic expenses”. The University of South Asia, a regional university supported by members of the South Asia Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC), gets a substantial increase of ₹ 94 Crore to ₹ 120 Crore.

MEA, which aims to open a new embassy in Africa, has an increase in budget ₹ 250 crore for continents. The Ministry will get ₹ 300 Crore and ₹ 750 Crore for Bangladesh and Nepal.