Rajnath Singh arrives in Dushanbe for SCO CHG meeting on Oct 20
Synopsis
Defence Minister Rajnath Singh has flown to Dushanbe to lead India's delegation at the 25th SCO Council of Heads of Government meeting — a notable elevation from last year's Moscow edition, where External Affairs Minister Jaishankar represented Delhi. With China and Pakistan at the same table, the sidelines could matter as much as the agenda.
Key Takeaways
Defence Minister Rajnath Singh arrived in Dushanbe, Tajikistan on 19 October 2026 for the 25th SCO Council of Heads of Government (CHG) meeting.
The meeting, scheduled for 20 October 2026 , will focus on trade, economy, investment, connectivity, innovation , and cultural exchanges.
India previously participated in the CHG meeting in Moscow on 18 November 2025 , represented by External Affairs Minister S.
India has championed three pillars — Security, Connectivity, and Opportunity — as its SCO economic framework, referencing PM Modi's vision from the Bishkek Summit.
The SCO now has 10 member states , 2 observer states , and 15 dialogue partners .
Defence Minister Rajnath Singh arrived in Dushanbe, Tajikistan on Monday evening, 19 October 2026, to represent India at the 25th Meeting of the Council of Heads of Government (CHG) of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO), scheduled for Tuesday, 20 October. The two-day official visit marks India's continued engagement with the multilateral grouping on trade, connectivity, and institutional cooperation.
What the SCO CHG Meeting Will Cover
According to the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), the CHG meeting will centre on strengthening multilateral cooperation among SCO member states — particularly across trade, economy, investment, connectivity, innovation, and cultural-humanitarian exchanges. Delegates are also expected to review the progress of ongoing cooperation initiatives and consider decisions on the organisation's financial and institutional functioning.
The previous CHG meeting was held in Moscow, Russia, on 18 November 2025, where India was represented by External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar. The shift in India's representative from the foreign minister to the defence minister for this edition signals the breadth of Delhi's SCO engagement agenda.
Rajnath Singh's Departure Statement
Before departing New Delhi on Monday, Singh posted on X: 'Leaving New Delhi for Dushanbe. Looking forward to representing India at the SCO Heads of Government (HoG) meeting in Tajikistan on 19-20 October 2026. The SCO HoGs meeting will focus on strengthening cooperation in culture, connectivity, economy, innovation, investment and people to people ties, besides reviewing progress in financial and institutional functioning.'
The MEA added that India remains actively engaged across various SCO mechanisms, contributing through initiatives in startups and innovation, digital public infrastructure, and people-to-people exchanges.
India's Trade and Connectivity Push Within the SCO
India's positioning at the SCO has increasingly pivoted toward economic themes. At the 25th meeting of Ministers of SCO Member States Responsible for Foreign Economic and Trade Activities — also held in Dushanbe in September 2026 — India underscored the three pillars of 'Security, Connectivity, and Opportunity' for international trade.
In that meeting, Additional Secretary (Commerce) Yashvir Singh stressed the significant economic potential of the SCO and the need to translate it into tangible outcomes through increased intra-SCO trade, lower trade costs, resilient supply chains, and enhanced connectivity. He referenced the vision articulated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the SCO Summit in Bishkek, framing economic significance around supply-chain resilience and greater market access.
SCO's Expanding Membership
The SCO now comprises 10 member states — India, Belarus, Iran, Kazakhstan, China, Kyrgyzstan, Pakistan, Russia, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan. The grouping also counts two observer states — Afghanistan and Mongolia — and 15 dialogue partners, including the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, Egypt, Sri Lanka, and Nepal, making it one of the world's largest regional organisations by geographic and demographic coverage.
India's participation in the Dushanbe CHG meeting will be closely watched for any bilateral engagements on the sidelines, particularly given the presence of China and Pakistan within the same multilateral framework.
Point of View
As in 2025 — to an SCO economic cooperation summit is a quiet but deliberate signal: Delhi is treating multilateral engagement at the CHG level as a whole-of-government priority, not merely a diplomatic formality. The three-pillar 'Security, Connectivity, Opportunity' framing is smart positioning, but the real test is whether India can convert SCO rhetoric into measurable intra-bloc trade gains. With China deepening Central Asian infrastructure ties and Pakistan present at the same table, New Delhi's room for manoeuvre is tighter than the anodyne agenda suggests. Watchers should focus less on the communiqué and more on any bilateral sideline meetings Singh holds.
NationPress
19 Oct 2026
Frequently Asked Questions
Why is Rajnath Singh representing India at the SCO CHG meeting instead of the Foreign Minister?
The MEA has not given an explicit reason for the change in representative. At the previous CHG meeting in Moscow on 18 November 2025, External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar led India's delegation; this time, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh has been deputed, reflecting a broad whole-of-government approach to SCO engagement.
What is the SCO Council of Heads of Government (CHG) meeting?
The SCO CHG meeting is an annual gathering of the prime ministers or equivalent heads of government of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation's member states. It focuses on economic, trade, and institutional matters, distinct from the Heads of State Summit which deals with broader political and security issues.
What issues will India raise at the 25th SCO CHG meeting in Dushanbe?
According to the MEA, India will focus on advancing cooperation in trade, economy, investment, connectivity, innovation, and people-to-people ties. India has also articulated three strategic pillars — Security, Connectivity, and Opportunity — as its framework for SCO economic engagement.
Which countries are members of the SCO?
The SCO currently has 10 member states: India, Belarus, Iran, Kazakhstan, China, Kyrgyzstan, Pakistan, Russia, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan. It also has two observer states — Afghanistan and Mongolia — and 15 dialogue partners including the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and Sri Lanka.
What did India say at the earlier SCO trade ministers meeting in Dushanbe in September 2026?
At the September 2026 SCO trade ministers meeting in Dushanbe, India's Additional Secretary (Commerce) Yashvir Singh called for increased intra-SCO trade, lower trade costs, resilient supply chains, and enhanced connectivity. He cited PM Modi's Bishkek Summit vision and the three pillars of Security, Connectivity, and Opportunity as India's economic guiding framework within the SCO.
