With such a confluence of legendary, edifying and spiritual understanding, and shatterproof by a common impulse for regional economic integration and development, it’s clearly time for South Asia. In the wake of breakdown of Bretton Woods system all the developing countries felt the need of strengthening their economic base by forging cooperation among them. These factors motivated India to take initiative for promoting regional cooperation in South and South East Asia. After getting independence on 15 August 1947 there was a lot to do for India to have a greater say in the bipolar world. Multidimensional efforts were required to strengthen ourselves whether internally or externally. A lot of steps were taken to boost our economy and trade. To make our position strong at the world level, relations were made with the countries bilaterally as well as jointly through the organisations. India’s approach to regional co-operation, right from the beginning has been to promote collective self-reliance, alleviate poverty and backwardness through self-help. The first significant step towards Asian integration was taken by India when first Asian Relations Conference was convened in New Delhi. Jawaharlal Nehru was the guiding spirit behind it. Nehru referred to the “widespread urge and an awareness that the time has come for us, peoples for Asia to meet together, to hold together and to advance together.” It was during 1970s that India acquired self-sufficiency to a great extent both in the matters of economic development and defence preparedness. Our country gave apex precedence to economic sphere for building real co-operation among the South Asian countries and it is due to its primary role that resulted in the origin of Asian Development Bank. The institutional framework agreed upon when SAARC was launched in August 1983 could be regarded as the first pragmatic step in the right direction. On the very question of institutional arrangements, India had favoured going slow on the whole issue. It never tried to get the secretariat stationed into its territory, though it had comparatively better infrastructural facilities nor was there any desire to have an Indian appointed first SAARC Secretary General.