Policy shift or compulsion

The 50-minute-long address of President Ram Nath Kovind in the beginning of Budget Session at parliament has indicated a policy shift towards the Taliban taking over Afghanistan as there was no mention of the critical issue in his speech on January 31, 2022.
The president of India talked in depth about the decisions and policies of the central government, but remained tight-lipped over Taliban taking over Afghanistan and also over China and Pakistan, which has left everyone in puzzle and simultaneously indicates a possible shift of country’s policy.
Since the Taliban took over Afghanistan in August 2021, India has been sending huge consignments of medical aid to the Taliban. Besides, the Budget tabled today, has mentioned that the country has allocated Rs 200 crore to Taliban ruled Afghanistan.
Although the budget is lower than the previous year, when the government allocated Rs 360 crore to the country, the unexpected move has clear indications that the Taliban is possibly being accepted and the policy of the country towards Afghanistan has changed on the ground.
This comes days after the Prime Minister Narendra Modi addressing the Presidents of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyz Republic, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan, at the first-ever India-Central Asia summit that was also held to mark 30 years of establishment of relations between both sides, stated the situation in Afghanistan has all members worried.
After the invasion of the United States in Afghanistan, India turned out to be a biggest aid supporter for the neighboring country and has been involved in mega infrastructure projects including the Afghan parliament and the India-Afghanistan friendship dam in Heart, which points out India’s investment in the country.
Likewise, the silence over Pakistan and China seems the part of the policy shift as Indo-Pak has also formalized the modalities with regard to sending aid of wheat in February after consignments of medicines.
Therefore, the seemingly policy shift would certainly help in preventing the losses invested in the neighboring country and also lead to the bonhomie with the new rulers that is set to help in ensuring peace and prosperity of the twin nations.