India shares land borders with seven countries (Pakistan, Afghanistan, China, Nepal, Bhutan, Myanmar and Bangladesh) and maritime boundaries with Sri Lanka and the Maldives, besides Indonesia, Thailand and Myanmar at sea. The total land border is about 15,106.7 km. This page lists each neighbour with border length, the Indian states it touches, the boundary line and the force that guards it, the details UPSC Prelims and GS Paper II ask about most.
Quick Answer
India has 7 land neighbours: Bangladesh (longest border, 4,096.7 km), China (3,488 km), Pakistan (3,323 km), Nepal (1,751 km), Myanmar (1,643 km), Bhutan (699 km) and Afghanistan (106 km, through Pakistan-occupied Gilgit-Baltistan). Sri Lanka and the Maldives are maritime neighbours; Sri Lanka is separated by the Palk Strait and Gulf of Mannar. Three states touch three countries each: West Bengal (Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan), Sikkim (China, Nepal, Bhutan) and Arunachal Pradesh (Bhutan, China, Myanmar).
India’s Land Neighbours at a Glance
| Country | Border length (km) | Indian states and UTs on the border | Boundary line | Guarded by |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bangladesh | 4,096.7 | West Bengal, Assam, Meghalaya, Tripura, Mizoram | Radcliffe Line | BSF |
| China | 3,488 | Ladakh, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Sikkim, Arunachal Pradesh | Line of Actual Control; McMahon Line (east) | ITBP |
| Pakistan | 3,323 | Gujarat, Rajasthan, Punjab, Jammu and Kashmir, Ladakh | Radcliffe Line; Line of Control (J&K) | BSF; Army on the LoC |
| Nepal | 1,751 | Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, West Bengal, Sikkim | Open border (1950 Treaty) | SSB |
| Myanmar | 1,643 | Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland, Manipur, Mizoram | Defined by 1967 boundary agreement | Assam Rifles |
| Bhutan | 699 | Sikkim, West Bengal, Assam, Arunachal Pradesh | Open border (2007 Friendship Treaty) | SSB |
| Afghanistan | 106 | Ladakh (Gilgit-Baltistan, under Pakistani occupation) | Durand Line (Af-Pak) | Not physically held by India |
Each Neighbour in Brief
Pakistan
The border was drawn by the Radcliffe Line in 1947 and runs from the Rann of Kutch to the Siachen region. In Jammu and Kashmir it becomes the Line of Control, set by the 1972 Simla Agreement, and north of point NJ9842 the Actual Ground Position Line on the Siachen Glacier. Sir Creek, a 96-km estuary in the Rann of Kutch, remains disputed.
China
There is no agreed boundary. The Line of Actual Control is divided into the western (Ladakh), middle (Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand) and eastern (Sikkim, Arunachal Pradesh) sectors. In the east, India accepts the McMahon Line from the 1914 Simla Convention, which China rejects; China claims Arunachal Pradesh as "South Tibet". Flashpoints include Aksai Chin, Doklam (2017) and Galwan (2020).
Nepal
An open border under the Treaty of Peace and Friendship, 1950 lets citizens of both countries live and work freely in each other’s territory. Disputed areas: Kalapani, Lipulekh and Limpiyadhura, which Nepal added to its official map in 2020, and Susta.
Bhutan
Bhutan’s foreign policy relationship with India rests on the India–Bhutan Friendship Treaty, 2007, which replaced the 1949 treaty. India is Bhutan’s largest trading partner and buys hydroelectricity from projects such as Chukha, Tala and Mangdechhu.
Bangladesh
India’s longest land border. The Land Boundary Agreement of 1974, put into effect by the 100th Constitutional Amendment Act, 2015, exchanged 111 Indian enclaves for 51 Bangladeshi enclaves and settled the land boundary. The maritime boundary was settled by the Permanent Court of Arbitration in 2014.
Myanmar
The only ASEAN country with a land border with India and the gateway for the Act East Policy (the Kaladan Multi-Modal Transit Transport Project and the India–Myanmar–Thailand Trilateral Highway). In 2024 the Centre decided to end the Free Movement Regime, which let border residents cross up to 16 km without a visa, and to fence the whole border.
Afghanistan
India’s claimed border with Afghanistan (106 km) lies in the Wakhan Corridor region beyond Gilgit-Baltistan, which is under Pakistan’s occupation, so India has no physical access to it. The Afghanistan–Pakistan line is the Durand Line of 1893.
Maritime Neighbours
| Country | Separated by | Key fact |
|---|---|---|
| Sri Lanka | Palk Strait, Gulf of Mannar | Katchatheevu island was ceded to Sri Lanka by the 1974 agreement; Adam’s Bridge (Ram Setu) lies between Pamban and Mannar. |
| Maldives | Eight Degree Channel (from Minicoy, Lakshadweep) | India shares a maritime boundary under the 1976 agreement. |
| Indonesia | Andaman Sea (from Indira Point, Great Nicobar) | Indira Point is about 150 km from Indonesia’s Sumatra. |
| Thailand | Andaman Sea | Maritime boundary agreed in 1978. |
The Ten Degree Channel separates the Andaman Islands from the Nicobar Islands, the Nine Degree Channel separates Kavaratti from Minicoy, and the Eight Degree Channel separates Minicoy from the Maldives.
States and Borders: Exam Facts
- States with no international border: Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Odisha, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Goa, Maharashtra, Haryana. (Coastal states still have maritime boundaries.)
- States bordering three countries: Sikkim (China, Nepal, Bhutan), West Bengal (Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan) and Arunachal Pradesh (Bhutan, China, Myanmar).
- State with the longest international border: West Bengal, mostly with Bangladesh (about 2,217 km).
- Only state bordering Pakistan and the sea: Gujarat.
- Siliguri Corridor ("Chicken’s Neck"), about 22 km wide at its narrowest, links the North-East to the rest of India between Nepal and Bangladesh.
- India’s coastline was re-measured in 2023–24 with a new method at about 11,098 km, up from the old figure of 7,516.6 km.
For how these neighbours shape India’s diplomacy, see our Indian foreign policy notes and International Relations notes.
