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NCERT Solutions for Class 7th Social Science Chapter 14 Chapter opening — The Big Questions

Book page 29 Updated on2026-09-19

Q1.
What defines a ‘neighbour’? Is it just shared land borders?
Answer

No — a shared land border is only one way of being a neighbour. The chapter opens by saying so directly: “When we think of a neighbour, we often imagine a country that shares a land boundary with us. That is the traditional view of neighbourhood.”

The chapter then widens the idea in two steps.

Kind of neighbourWhat joins them to IndiaCountries named in the chapter
Land neighboursA shared land boundary — over 15,100 km in all, running through deserts, plains, forests, mountains, marshes and river valleysPakistan and Afghanistan (northwest), China's region of Tibet, Nepal, Bhutan (north), Bangladesh and Myanmar (east)
Immediate maritime neighboursA short stretch of seaSri Lanka (about 32 km across the Palk Strait) and the Maldives (about 130 km from Minicoy)
The wider maritime neighbourhoodA shared ocean, seen “if we look at India from a high-altitude satellite”Iran, Oman, Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia

A maritime neighbour, the chapter explains, is “a country connected to another by a shared sea or ocean, even without a direct land border”. The ocean is not a wall between such countries; it is “a vital link, facilitating centuries of trade, cultural exchange, and historical ties”.

Why it happens: India has been a maritime nation from the beginning — sea on three sides and a peninsula reaching deep into the Indian Ocean. For most of history it was easier to sail from Gujarat to Oman, or from Tamil Nadu to Sumatra, than to cross the Himalayas. So the sea made neighbours out of countries that no land border touches.
Tip: Afghanistan is the useful test case. Today it shares no land border with India — the creation of Pakistan in 1947 came in between — yet the chapter still counts it a neighbour, because of the Uttarāpatha route and centuries of shared history and culture. That alone proves a neighbour is not defined by a line on the ground.
Q2.
How do geography and history influence the nature of India’s relationships with her neighbours?
Answer

Geography decides who India can reach and how; history decides what India and that country already mean to each other. Every relationship in this chapter is made of both.

What geography does

  • Mountains separate but do not seal. The Himalayas stand between India and China, yet Buddhism crossed them, and so did monks — Faxian and Xuanzang coming to India, Bodhidharma, Dharmakṣhema and Kumārajīva going to China.
  • Rivers join. India and Bangladesh share transboundary river systems from the Ganga and the Brahmaputra, which feed “agriculture, fisheries, transportation, and the livelihoods of millions of people in both countries”. Rivers rising in Bhutan flow into India and now generate hydroelectric power for both.
  • An open plain allows an open border. Nepal's border with India runs across Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, West Bengal and Sikkim, and its “geographical proximity has allowed for centuries of interaction”.
  • The sea carries trade and aid. India's peninsular shape and 11,100 km coastline make her “a vital link between Southeast Asia, West Asia, and Africa”, and let her send disaster relief quickly — as she did after the 2004 tsunami and the 2014 water crisis in Malé.
  • Being landlocked shapes a country's needs. Bhutan and Afghanistan are landlocked; Afghanistan's access to India was complicated by the creation of Pakistan in 1947, and India's work at Iran's Chabahar Port is meant to give “better access to Afghanistan and Central Asia”.

What history does

  • Shared faith leaves a lasting bond. Buddhism links India with Sri Lanka, Myanmar, Thailand, Bhutan and China; Bhutanese pilgrims still travel to Bodh Gaya, Rajgir, Nalanda, Udayagiri and Sikkim.
  • Old trade routes become modern ones. The Uttarāpatha once linked the Ganga plains to Central Asia; today the India–Myanmar–Thailand Trilateral Highway and the Asian Highway Network do similar work.
  • A divided history leaves difficulty. The chapter is plain about this: the 1947 Partition is “a legacy of the colonial era that continues to shape the present”, and India and Pakistan “share one of the most complex relationships in South Asia”.
  • A shared war can create closeness. Bangladesh “was born in 1971 as the outcome of a war between India and Pakistan”, and India and Bangladesh have since built “one of the most important” relationships in South Asia.
Why it happens: geography does not change, so it keeps producing the same needs — water to share, a pass to cross, a sea lane to protect. History changes slowly, and it decides whether those needs are met with trust or with suspicion. That is why two countries with almost the same geography, Nepal and Pakistan, have such different relationships with India.
Q3.
In what ways are India and her neighbours interconnected today?
Answer

Through trade, treaties and travel, through connectivity projects, through shared religion and culture, and through joint work on disasters and security. The chapter gives concrete examples of each.

Kind of connectionExamples from the chapter
TradeIndia exports iron ore, chemicals and cotton yarn to China and imports electronic items and industrial equipment (2024-2025). India is Nepal's largest trading partner, supplying petroleum, medicines, food items and manufactured products, and buying agricultural produce, handicrafts and garments. India is one of Malaysia's largest trading partners; Singapore is one of the largest foreign investors in India.
Treaties and agreementsThe 1950 Treaty of Peace and Friendship with Nepal; the Land Border Crossing Agreement of 2018 with Myanmar; SAARC, formed in 1985; the International Solar Alliance, of which the Maldives is a member.
Movement of peopleThe India–Nepal open border, crossed without passport or visa; the Kartarpur Corridor to Pakistan on a permit; Bhutanese and Myanmarese pilgrims visiting Buddhist sites in India; Indian tourists and students going to Singapore.
Connectivity projectsThe India–Myanmar–Thailand Trilateral Highway from Manipur; the Zaranj–Delaram highway and the Afghan Parliament building in Afghanistan; Chabahar Port in Iran; hydroelectric projects such as Tala in Bhutan.
Religion and cultureBuddhism across Sri Lanka, Myanmar, Thailand, Bhutan and China; Hindu shrines and epics in Thailand's royal ceremonies; South Indian food, language and dance in the Maldives; Tamil as an official language of Singapore; ‘Little India' in Singapore city.
Disaster relief and securityIndia's help to the Maldives during the 2004 tsunami, the 2014 Malé water crisis and COVID-19; the Indian Tsunami Early Warning Centre, Hyderabad, which alerts neighbouring countries; joint India–Oman military exercises; joint protection of the Sundarban with Bangladesh.
Why it happens: most of what a neighbourhood needs cannot be done by one country alone. A tsunami warning is useless if only one coast gets it; a river does not stop at a border; a sea lane is safe only if everyone patrols it. So interconnection is not a favour countries do each other — it is the practical way each of them protects itself.
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