Hinglish

China and Pakistan

Class 7 Social Science · Chapter 14: India and Her Neighbours · NCERT Exploring Society: India and Beyond section 14.2

Learn

India and China, separated by the Himalayas, share a border running past Arunachal Pradesh, Sikkim, Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh and Ladakh. Buddhism is a strong link: it reached China around the 1st century CE, Chinese monks like Faxian and Xuanzang came to study in India, and Indian monks like Bodhidharma and Kumārajīva taught in China. In the 13th century Hindu merchants built temples at the port of Quanzhou. Trade continues today, though China sells India about eight times more than it buys, and border tensions have led to conflicts as well as talks.

Before the 1947 Partition, Pakistan was part of India; it was founded on a religious basis, unlike India. Wars in 1948, 1965 and 1971, the Kargil War of 1999 and terrorist attacks backed by the Pakistan army have kept relations tense. The border crosses Gujarat, Rajasthan, Punjab, Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh. Yet shared heritage remains: the Katas Raj temples, the Hinglaj Mata shrine, and the Kartarpur Corridor, opened in 2019, which lets Indian pilgrims visit Guru Nānak's resting place without a visa.

Explore: place events on the timeline.

  1. Partition took place in 1947. Put the marker there.
  2. The Kartarpur Corridor opened in 2019. Put the marker there.

Remember

  • Buddhism and trade link India and China, though border tensions persist.
  • India–Pakistan relations are shaped by Partition and conflict, yet shared shrines like Kartarpur remain.

Quick check

Which Chinese monk travelled to study at Indian centres of learning?

  1. Xuanzang
  2. Bodhidharma
  3. Kumārajīva
  4. Mahendra
Answer

Xuanzang. Bodhidharma and Kumārajīva went the other way, from India to China.

Think about it

Can the Kartarpur Corridor be a model for peace? Why?

One answer

It shows that even tense neighbours can cooperate on something people deeply value; small steps of trust like this can open the way to wider dialogue.

Practice

Practise with fresh questions at three levels (easy, medium, hard), some answered hands-on, with hints and worked answers. Get 4 of your last 5 right to finish the topic.