Connectivity Corridors Set to Recast North-East as Asia's New Gateway

On a cool and moist afternoon in India's North-East, in a region long defined by distance and difficult terrain, policymakers and diplomats gathered to talk about roads, rivers and ports, and about how geography might finally begin to work in the North-East's favour.

- JAYANTA ROY CHOWDHURY

The region is undergoing a profound transformation, as a cluster of pocket connectivity projects begins to redraw the region's economic map and strategic relevance in Asia.

At a high-level meeting held in Shillong last week, the policymakers and diplomats were joined by infrastructure experts to examine how emerging transport corridors could link North-East India more closely with Southeast Asia and the wider Indo-Pacific economy.

The meeting was convened by the think tank Asian Confluence, led by its executive director Sabyasachi Dutta, in collaboration with India’s Ministry of External Affairs, the government of Japan and the regional grouping BIMSTEC.

While one project is the India-Myanmar-Thailand Trilateral Highway, another is the Kaladan Multi-Modal Transit Transport Project, which aims to provide sea access to India’s northeastern states through Myanmar. A third project is a deep-sea port being constructed by Japan at Bangladesh's Matarbari, which will connect industrial clusters ranging from Bangladeshi garment makers to Tata's mega semiconductor complex in Assam to the global market.

"North-East India is located in a pivotal geopolitical position as a gateway to Southeast Asia. When we view this region as part of a broader economic zone encompassing Nepal, Bhutan, India, Bangladesh, and Southeast Asia, it possesses significant potential to serve as a powerful engine of growth," pointed out Japan's State Minister for Foreign Affairs, HORII Iwao, at the meeting. The minister added that, as part of Japan’s "free and open Indo-Pacific" initiative, Tokyo "will work toward realising the concept of an 'Industrial Value Chain' connecting the Bay of Bengal and Northeast India."