📋 Written Ability Test (WAT)/Essay Analysis Guide
🌟 Can India’s Act East Policy Strengthen Its Ties with ASEAN?
🌐 Understanding the Topic
India’s Act East Policy reflects its ambitions to enhance ties with ASEAN, bridging economic, cultural, and strategic gaps. This essay highlights India’s opportunities and challenges in regional integration.
⏳ Effective Planning and Writing
✍️ Time Allocation (30 minutes):
- Planning: 5 minutes
- Writing: 20 minutes
- Review: 5 minutes
Preparation Tips:
- 📊 Use updated trade and investment statistics.
- ⚠️ Focus on challenges like infrastructure delays and geopolitical rivalries.
🛠️ Introduction Techniques for Essays
- Contrast Approach: “While ASEAN-India trade reached $131.5 billion in 2023, infrastructure delays and geopolitical tensions hinder deeper collaboration.”
- Solution-Based Approach: “India’s Act East Policy offers immense potential for ASEAN ties, provided challenges like trade imbalances and project delays are addressed.”
📋 Structuring the Essay Body
- 🏅 Achievements:
- Trade milestones, including $131.5 billion trade in 2023.
- Joint military exercises showcasing strategic alignment.
- Connectivity projects like the India-Myanmar-Thailand Trilateral Highway.
- ⚠️ Challenges:
- Delays in the Trilateral Highway project.
- Dependence on China for trade and geopolitical rivalries.
- Trade imbalances affecting economic partnerships.
- 🔮 Future Outlook:
- Leverage digital economy opportunities, including fintech and e-commerce.
- Collaborate on green energy projects for sustainable growth.
✅ Concluding Effectively
- Balanced Conclusion: “India’s Act East Policy marks significant progress but requires strategic focus on infrastructure and trade dynamics to strengthen ASEAN ties.”
- Global Comparison: “India can learn from Japan’s consistent ASEAN investments to build long-term regional influence.”
📊 Analyzing Successes and Shortcomings
- 🏅 Key Achievements:
- Growing trade partnerships with ASEAN nations.
- Strategic defense collaborations through military exercises.
- Cultural exchange fostering deeper ties.
- ⚠️ Ongoing Challenges:
- Infrastructure delays like the Trilateral Highway.
- Competition with China in the ASEAN region.
- 🌍 Global Context: Lessons from ASEAN-China and ASEAN-Japan collaborations on sustained investments.
🚀 Recommendations for Sustainable Progress
- 📢 Accelerate infrastructure projects like the Trilateral Highway.
- 🌐 Enhance focus on technology and digital partnerships.
- 💰 Promote private investments in diverse ASEAN nations.
📄 Sample Short Essays
- Balanced Perspective: “India’s Act East Policy highlights its ambition to enhance ASEAN ties. While trade and strategic collaboration are strengths, delays in infrastructure and reliance on China remain challenges. Addressing these gaps will unlock the policy’s full potential.”
- Solution-Oriented Approach: “India must prioritize faster execution of projects like the Trilateral Highway and expand digital economy collaborations to strengthen ASEAN ties under the Act East Policy.”
- Global Comparison: “By emulating Japan’s focused ASEAN investments, India can amplify its Act East Policy, fostering economic growth and geopolitical balance in the region.”