Troika for India's Northeast Region

Table of Contents

Context: At a conclave on connectivity and regional partnership between Northeast India, Bay of Bengal region, Bangladesh and Japan, representatives of both Bangladesh and Japan recently said that Tripura faces a huge potential of international connectivity to become a trade and commerce gateway in the region.

The North East Region of India

States: The Northeast region of India comprises eight states – Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Sikkim and Tripura – each with its own distinct history and identity.
International Boundaries: The region shares its borders with Bhutan, China, Myanmar and Bangladesh.
India’s Act East Policy: It is a diplomatic initiative by India to promote economic cooperation, cultural ties and develop strategic relationship with countries in the Asia-Pacific region through continuous engagement at bilateral, regional and multilateral levels thereby providing enhanced connectivity to the States of North Eastern Region with other countries in our neighbourhood.
- The Northeast of India has been a priority in India’s Act East Policy.
- This eastward drive started in 1992 under the Look East policy.

Importance of India’s North East Region

Natural Resources: The North-East is a vibrant source of energy, oil, natural gas and limestone. Its geo-strategic location and natural resources also makes it a potential powerhouse of India for development and progress.
Biodiversity: Northeast of India is home to both unique flora and fauna. It is one of the biodiverse regions of the world.
Trade and Tourism: The region has huge potential for export of a variety of agro products and remarkable local handicrafts and performing arts can act as a magnet for promotion of international tourism for neighboring the Western countries as well.
Economic Groupings: The Northeast is located at the hub of a geographical space which is home to the population of Bangladesh, Myanmar, Nepal, Bhutan, Southwestern China and the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN).
- Regional groupings such as Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technology and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC) and the ASEAN can all act as catalysts for promoting wide-ranging economic cooperation for both bilateral and multilateral trade and commerce.
Strategic Importance: Northeast India has an extraordinarily important international strategic dimension and is a vital part of the nation’s defence architecture. It is not only India’s land bridge to Myanmar but also a gateway to Southeast Asia and beyond.
- The Siliguri corridor is a region that shares a border with Bhutan, Nepal, Bangladesh and China with an area of just over 100 km in India’s control.
  - The roadways and railways near the Line of Actual Control (LAC) are connected by the Siliguri corridor.

Projects in North East India

Matarbari Deep Sea Port: The Matarbari Deep Sea Port (DSP) is being developed at the southeastern coast of Bangladesh with Japanese assistance.
- It the holds potential to become a regional hub for industrial value chain connecting Northeast India through Tripura with Bangladesh and onward onto the larger Bay of Bengal region.
Maitri Setu: The inauguration of Maitri Setu over the Feni River was one of those landmark projects between Tripura and Bangladesh. Tripura will emerge as the gateway to Southeast Asia.
Agartala–Akhaura Railway Link: It will connect Gangasagar in Bangladesh to Nischintapur in India and then to Agartala railway station in India.
- This rail link will reduce the journey time between Agartala and Kolkata by passing through Dhaka instead of Guwahati.
Kaladan Multi Modal Transit Transport Project: It has been jointly identified by the India and Myanmar to create a multi-modal mode of transport for shipment of cargo.
- It will connect Sittwe Port in Myanmar to the India-Myanmar border and contribute to the economic development of the North-Eastern States of India.
- It also provides a strategic link to the North-East, thereby reducing pressure on the Siliguri Corridor.
Eastern Grid: India is planning to develop “Eastern Grid,” a 5,000km-long waterway to boost connectivity and trade between eastern Indian states and BBIN (Bangladesh, Bhutan, India and Nepal) nations and amplify trade potential with Southeast Asian nations as well.
- The Eastern Grid can further amplify trade with countries like Myanmar, Thailand, Malaysia and Singapore.
India-Myanmar-Thailand Trilateral Highway: India is pushing for the early completion and expansion of the India-Myanmar-Thailand Trilateral Highway to improve connectivity in the region. The connectivity to Cambodia, Laos, and Vietnam is also seen as a counter to China’s Belt and Road Initiative.
Meghalaya Integrated Transport Project (MITP): In 2020, the World Bank-funded Meghalaya Integrated Transport Project was initiated to “improve and modernize the transport sector and help Meghalaya to harness its vast growth potential for high-value agriculture and tourism”. The initiative includes 13 projects amounting to Rs 547 crore including the construction of three major bridges.

Challenges in the North East Region

Physical Connectivity: Difficult and hilly terrain, geographical location and short working season pose a challenge to development of optimal infrastructure and communication links within the region and with the rest of the country.
Infrastructural Bottlenecks: The infrastructural bottlenecks include inadequate road and railway connectivity, power transmission and distribution, telecom connectivity and absence of airports in the region.
Digital Connectivity: The objectives of improving mobile connectivity in all the villages in the region, improving high-speed internet connectivity, last mile internet connectivity from the village to a consumer have not been achieved satisfactorily.
Trade and Commerce: The industrial scenario is not encouraging in terms of the number of factories as well as the shares of fixed capital, invested capital, net value-added and the number of workers in the industrial sector as compared to the all-India position.
Population and Education: While there are number of colleges and universities, North East Region lags behind in quality education and lack of constructive higher educational institutions.
Natural Resources Utilization: Northeast India is a storehouse of natural resources which are essential for creating employment and generation of GDP in Northeast India are either underutilized, unutilized, and mismanaged.
External Security: All eight states of the North-East have international borders with China, Myanmar, Bangladesh, Myanmar or Bhutan.
- With such vast borders, there is always room for illegal immigration, arms smuggling, cattle and commodity smuggling.
Internal Security: The North-Eastern states have witnessed a rise of insurgent activities and regional secessionist movements. Some of the insurgent groups are United ULFA, PLA, NSCN, ATTF.
Territorial Conflicts: There are existing inter-state and international territorial conflicts within the Northeast that are often based on historical border disputes and differing ethnic, tribal or cultural affinities. Example: Assam-Mizoram Border Dispute.

Way Forward

Roads and ports must be accompanied by job opportunities that can come only from new industrial enterprises set up with national and foreign investment.
China’s aggressive actions in the region can be countered by India and Japan and other like-minded countries who can cooperate in the wider expanse of the Indo-Pacific
Japan views Bangladesh and other areas to the south as a single economic zone and it will seek to promote the Bay of Bengal-Northeast India industrial value chain concept in cooperation with India and Bangladesh to foster the growth of the entire region.
Japan as a single investor in the northeast is unworkable. Indian companies too must invest. India must ease restrictions on the flow of investments from Bangladesh.
The goal of connecting a large part of South Asia with Southeast Asia can come from the triad of Bangladesh, India and Japan (BIJ). A BIJ Forum should be launched first at the level of Foreign Ministers, a move that will be welcome in the northeast.