India and the New Great Game in Central Asia

The phrase "Great Game" is commonly ascribed to the contest for imperial dominance in Central Asia. The focus of the Anglo-Russian rivalry during the 19th century was the strategic competition known as the "Great Game" in Central Asia. Following Russian expansion and territorial annexation of Central Asia, the Czarist Russian Empire wanted to penetrate into Afghanistan. The British controlled Balochistan areas of Pakistan so as to get easy access to the warm waters of Arabian Sea. That led to the outbreak of the Anglo-Russian 'Great Game' which settled on recognising Afghanistan as a buffer between Czarist and British Empires. Reconnecting Central and South Asia is a challenge and is also an opportunity because India as a core regional power has age-old ambitions to deepen its influence in what was called as 'Turkestan.' This paper will dwell at length on the role of India's policy oriented think tanks, research centers and universities in reaching out to Central Asia and how the assumption of power by the Taliban in Kabul in August 2021 tends to shape New Delhi's grand strategy and designs in Central Asia. The paper will also examine how Central Asia formulates India's strategic thought process and to what extent China and India are competitors in that region on pragmatic grounds.