A simple introduction to this answer can revolve around a general statement about ASEAN.

India’s emphasis on a deepened and multifaceted connection with ASEAN stems from considerable developments in the world’s political and economic landscape.

The Association of South-East Asian Nations (ASEAN) comprises Indonesia, Singapore, Philippines, Malaysia, Brunei, Thailand, Cambodia, Lao PDR, Myanmar and Vietnam.

India has taken other policy initiatives in the region that involve some members of ASEAN like the Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC), Mekong-Ganga Cooperation (MGC), etc

Body

You may incorporate some of the following points in the body of your answer:

• The Act East Policy is meant to serve the purposes of stronger trade and business ties with South East Asia and other Indo-Pacific countries and to create development opportunities for the North East States of India. Commerce, Culture and connectivity – the three Cs- are therefore the pillars of India’s current Act East Policy.
• India’s Act East Policy is at the heart of its eastward orientation and ties in with the broader approach to the Indo-Pacific.
• The collaboration between India and Asean has accelerated across a range of economic and strategic issue, including trade and investment, connectivity, energy, culture, people-to-people contacts, and maritime security.

Recent Developments

India and ASEAN countries declared to:

• Strengthen cooperation on cybersecurity by establishing new dialogue platforms between India and the ten-member bloc.
• Establish a comprehensive strategic partnership and enhance cooperation against terrorism.
• Enhance cooperation in the digital economy through a series of regional capacity-building activities in digital transformation, digital trade, digital skills and innovation, as well as Hackathons.
• Enhance cooperation in smart agriculture including the exchange of best practices in the use of new technologies to develop a future-ready, resilient, and sustainable food supply.
• Expedite the review of the ASEAN-India Trade in Goods Agreement (AITIGA) to make it more user-friendly, simple, and trade-facilitative, and work together to forge resilient supply chains, explore cooperation on a single window platform to enhance trade facilitation and integration.
• Enhance ASEAN-India cooperation in the space sector including through the establishment of tracking, data reception and processing stations in Vietnam and Indonesia, and encourage cooperation between ASEAN and Indian space industry players, including in new areas of collaboration.
• Revive tourism and related industries which have been severely hit by the Covid-19 pandemic through effective implementation of the ASEAN-India tourism work plans.
• India and several Southeast Asian nations including Singapore and Thailand have signed for cross-border trade of renewable energy (RE) electricity will help expand cross-border sale of electricity by India manifold. Currently, cross-border interconnections exist with Nepal, Bangladesh, Bhutan and Myanmar.