Consider the following statements in respect of BIMSTEC: [International Relations]

I. It is a is a regional organisation consisting of seven member States till January 2025.
II. It came into existence with the signing of the Dhaka Declaration, 1999.
III. Bangladesh, India, Sri Lanka, Thailand and Nepal are founding member States of BIMSTEC.
IV. In BIMSTEC, the subsector of ‘tourism’ is being led by India.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

The correct option is I only.

Let us analyze each statement step-by-step to understand why only the first statement is correct:

Statement I is correct:
BIMSTEC (Bayon of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation) is a regional organization comprising seven member States: Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Myanmar, Nepal, Sri Lanka, and Thailand. This composition has remained the same up to January 2025.

Statement II is incorrect:
BIMSTEC came into existence on June 6, 1997, through the signing of the Bangkok Declaration, not the Dhaka Declaration of 1999.

Statement III is incorrect:
The founding members of BIMSTEC (initially formed as BIST-EC) were Bangladesh, India, Sri Lanka, and Thailand. Myanmar joined later in December 1997, while Nepal and Bhutan became members only in February 2004. Therefore, Nepal is not a founding member.

Statement IV is incorrect:
Under the reconstituted sectors of cooperation within BIMSTEC, different member states lead different sectors. The Tourism subsector (under the People-to-People Contact sector) is led by Nepal, whereas India leads the Security, Counter-Terrorism and Transnational Crime, Disaster Management, and Energy sectors.