That “blood is thicker than water” was a big assurance by External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar to Sri Lankan hosts. The statement was also a reflection of Modi government’s commitment to ‘Neighbourhood first policy’ which seeks to shelve fears among the neighbours (excluding Pakistan) about India and showcase that New Delhi is an important stakeholder in their economic development and political stability. Since then Colombo and New Delhi have pushed for bilateral development agenda into ‘top gear’ and supported multiple initiatives.

The July 2023 meeting between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Ranil Wickremesinghe and the joint statement “Promoting Connectivity, Catalysing Prosperity: India- Sri Lanka Economic Partnership Vision” emphasised “promoting and strengthening connectivity in all its dimensions as the key enabler”. Further, both sides agreed to (a) “cooperate in development of ports and logistics infrastructure at Colombo, Trincomalee and Kankesanthurai with an aim to consolidate regional logistics and shipping, as per mutual understanding”; and (b) “resume passenger ferry services between Nagapattinam in India and Kankesanthurai in Sri Lanka and work towards early resumption of ferry services between Rameshwaram and Talaimannar, and other mutually agreed places”.

Three months later, in October 2023, ‘Cheriyapani’, a high-speed ferry operated by the Shipping Corporation of India made the inaugural voyage between Nagappatinam in India and Kankesanthurai (KKS) near Jaffna in the Northern Province of Sri Lanka.  Both government have also agreed to “continue to work towards commencement of ferry services between other ports, including the traditional route between Rameswaram- Talaimannar”.

The above maritime connectivity initiatives are noteworthy and must be seen through the prism of Blue Economy development in both India and Sri Lanka. The Indian Prime Minister has pitched for Blue Economy on regular basis. Earlier this month, while inaugurating the Global Maritime India Summit 2023, Modi unveiled ‘Amrit Kaal Vision 2047’, the long-term blueprint for the India’s Blue Economy. He flagged several initiatives including “Government’s vision of ‘Ports for Prosperity and Ports for Progress’, shipbuilding, coastal shipping, cost-effective logistic and identified Mumbai, Visakhapatnam and Chennai to have modern cruise terminals that would help India become a global cruise hub.

As far as Sri Lanka is concerned, it is an island state and its economic prosperity is dependent on the seas. It has promoted Blue Economy development since the 2016 under the ‘Sri Lanka NEXT’ program. Notwithstanding that, it has been observed that Sri Lanka requires “a viable Blue Economy strategy that combines the strengths of these efforts. As per the available statistics share of the blue economy as a percentage of GDP is 9.4%.” Furthermore, “adopting a Blue Economy strategy is not optional but mandatory for Sri Lanka” and for that “a better understanding of the ocean and its dynamics, selection of suitable individuals, care-fully considered decisions, as well as honest political leadership are all needed to execute such a program accurately and efficiently”. By all accounts, Sri Lanka has the potential to harness the potential of Blue Economy through sustainable development of resources.

There are several opportunities for India and Sri Lanka to jointly develop both bilaterally as well as multilaterally. In the context of the former, joint projects in the Gulf of Mannar-Palk Bay would be the optimal choice which has the potential of quick success. Several sectors including offshore energy (wind farms and tidal power), marine leisure industry (ferry cruises), marine innovation & technology; maritime safety and security, etc. offer numerous oportunities.

At the multilateral levels, the IORA is an important platform and Blue Economy features as one of its six priority areas. Sri Lanka is the current Chair of the IORA, and India the vice-chair for 2023-25 are primed to pursue Blue Economy development across the Indian Ocean region. A proactive Blue Economy agenda will help consolidate IORA initiatives, and these can potentially spinoff –act as catalyst for bilateral projects too.

However, there are a few bilateral challenges for the development of Blue Economy and these stem from the strategic prism that involves China. Chinese ocean research vessels are frequent visitors at Colombo port and New Delhi apprehends these visits have military intent too particularly passive operations such as surveillance-reconnaissance as well as marine scientific research that can undermine India’s underwater security. New Delhi has conveyed to Colombo about underwater marine surveys undertaken those involving marine archeology in Sri Lanka’s eastern waters. Colombo has assured New Delhi it would not allow any activities that jeopardize India’s security and is willing to work together to ensure the security of the region.

In essence, joint development of Blue Economy is a low hanging fruit and should be pursued with earnest. It also entails development of Industry 4.0 technologies such as Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning Big Data, etc., that are the catalyst for its development and sustainability.

Dr Vijay Sakhuja is Associated with Kalinga International Foundation, New Delhi.