A boat moored in Lakshadweep waters. Photo: Shutterstock
India needs tiny Lakshadweep to counter China. So why alienate it?
- The Indian Ocean archipelago is tiny yet strategically important for New Delhi to project power into an arena where it fears Chinese encroachment
- But its plans for developing Maldives-style tourism, which include a ban on beef and the sale of alcohol, have not impressed the mostly Muslim locals
A boat moored in Lakshadweep waters. Photo: Shutterstock