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I N D I A MUMBAI GWADAR PAKISTAN KABUL AFGHANISTAN NEPAL TURKMENISTAN IRAN CHABAHAR PORT Saudi Arabia Oman Yeman Myanmar Arabian Sea Bay of Bengal KM Distance between the Chabahar & Gwadar ports E W N S Not to Scale Lakshadweep (India) A n d a m a n & N i c o b a r I s l a n d s ( I n d i a ) The operation of the Chabahar port in Iran could substantially increase Afghanistan’s exports by providing a new transit route for Afghan to trade with India and the rest of the world. Recently the Indian government has approved USD Million for upgrading the capacity of Chabahar Port in Iran for an alternate trade transit route for Afghanistan. India-Afghanistan: Security Interests India faced many security challenges from the Taliban in Afghan during the 1990s.Pakistan has raised and supported several militant groups such as Lashkar- e-Taiba, Harkat-ul-Mujahideen/Harkat- ul-Ansar, and Harkat-ul-Jihad-al-Islami among others, which operate in India. All of these groups have trained in Afghanistan, with varying proximity to the Taliban and by extension Al-Qaeda. Thus India is absolutely clear that Afghanistan should not again become a terrorist safe haven. Radical ideologies and terrorism spreading in this region are a security threat for India. With Pakistan increasing its strategic depth in Afghanistan, it can reverse the gain of India. Pakistan can incubate and move around various anti-India groups in Afghan especially in Loya Paktia. The ( golden crescent comprising of Iran, Afghan, and Pakistan is a worry for India, especially with respect to the issue of drug abuse in Punjab. Islamic State is using Afghan as an outpost in Asia as it has come under stress in Iraq and Syria. Indian policy on Afghanistan In , India became the first country that Afghanistan signed a strategic partnership agreement. Until then, India was following the US demand of India’s limited cooperation with Afghanistan. India has repeatedly stressed that its relationship with Afghanistan is independent of Pakistan. India argues that the tripartite relationship between India, Pakistan, and