Meet on Look East Policy gets under way
>From our Bureau
New Delhi/GUWAHATI, Oct 31: Chief Ministers from the seven northeastern States
today met in New Delhi to take part in a meeting called by External Affairs
Minister Pranab Mukherjee to develop the North-east with special emphasis on
the Look East Policy.
Pranab Mukherjee underlined the importance of the subject of the meeting. While
this policy has yielded many benefits, including closer and strategic ties
between India and the South-east Asian countries, an impressive increase in the
quantum of bilateral trade and increased people-to-people interaction, the need
to focus the benefits of this cooperation more sharply on the northeastern
region, which is a natural bridge between India and the South-East Asian
countries.
The meeting was chaired by Pranab Mukherjee and was attended by Union Ministers
Mani Shankar Aiyar, Shivraj Patil, P Chidambaram, AK Antony, TR Baalu, Jayram
Ramesh and Ashwini Kumar.
Text of Gogois speech: Today, it surprises one to find Asom in pre-industrial
stage. The State today experiences unique economic problems arising out of
remoteness and poor connectivity, weak financial resource base, poor
infrastructure, shallow markets and natural calamities shattering the entire
economy of the State from time to time. In 1947, Asom was the State with the
second highest per capita income in the country but has slipped a number of
steps backward in the last six decades owing to these reasons. Though we have
been investing enough funds from the State Plan and other resources, the
situation is still not satisfactory. From the funds received from the Ministry
of DoNER, we have invested 11 per cent of the total approved cost in the power
sector and 37 per cent in the road sector. The funds received from NEC, to the
extent of 18 per cent are utilized for the development of roads. For the 11th
plan period, 9.8 per cent of the plan outlay is proposed for power
development and 13.7 per cent for the development of communication. On the
other hand, the 11th plan outlay provides for 21 per cent for agriculture and
allied activities, including irrigation and flood protection.
Imprisoned within a closed space, this region had been subjected to various
limitations by the countrys internal security as well as foreign policy. Not
to speak of direct foreign investment, even in the early few years of
liberalization of economy of India, a foreign tourist had to obtain a
restricted area permit and he was allowed to move only around the spot or area
where he was permitted to visit. A foreigner visiting his family members
working in this part of the country had to confine only to the premises of the
family members house. A group of tourists visiting the State or the North-east
could not cross the numbers as specified by the Government.
The Centres new industrial policy (NEIIP- 2007) and the Look East Policy seek
to open doors to domestic and international investors and thereby endeavour to
boost up the economy of Asom and the North-east through international trade and
business by removing trade barriers, opening the frontiers and providing road,
rail and air connectivity. These will certainly remove the geo-political
isolation of the State from the rest of the country. For us in the North-East
region, the Look East Policy is perceived as the only hope for breaking out of
isolation. Considering the near deadlock in the WTO, our hopes lie in regional
cooperation with our neighbouring South-east Asian countries.
We do have existing arrangement whereby some items are exported/imported to and
from Bangladesh through both river and land routes. Present scale of operations
are not attractive enough for private sector to create world-class facilities.
Considering the need to promote trade from the northeastern States, Prime
Minister Dr Manmohan Singh had appointed a Task Force on connectivity and
promotion of trade and investment in the regions. The task force has given very
important recommendations. Our hopes of developing vibrant trade and commerce
will be belied unless we work in tandem with foreign policy interventions and
put in place-required infrastructure and trade-friendly procedures and
practices. Given the time constraint, I would like to place the following for
immediate attention.
1. Development of connectivity
a. Development of ASEAN highway: The road connection to South-east Asian
countries is also available along ASEAN highway network that can be accessed
from the existing NH 39 and NH-36 of Asom through the Dimapur-Kohima-Imphal
road to reach Myanmar at the border town of Moreh. This needs to be developed
expeditiously.
b. Development of NH-153 (Stillwell Road): Reopening of the Stillwell Road
linking the region to Kunming, the capital of Yunan Province of China, through
Myanmar will greatly boost economy and trade activities from the region to
South-east Asian countries. The Myanmar portion of this Highway needs to be
developed so that plywood and other timber-based industries of upper Asom can
be revived. The Stillwell Road should also be hooked to the Trans-Asian highway
at Mea-Sot on the Thailand border.
c. Connectivity to Bhutan and Tibet: The NH-152 from the State is a direct link
to the Royal Kingdom of Bhutan. The NH-152 is being developed as a two-lane
highway at present. Therefore, there is ample scope of establishing good road
connectivity from Bhutan and beyond, to the Tibet Autonomous Region (TAR) which
will open up trade and commerce and other new economic activities.
d. Connectivity to Bangladesh through NH-51, NH-40, NH-151 and NH-44: The
Northeastern region has three distinct national highways connecting the capital
city of Bangladesh Dhaka. The routes are: the
Guwahati-Jorabat-Shillong-Dauki-Sylhet-Dhaka, the
Guwahati-Jorabat-Shillong-Karimganj-Sutarkadi-Sylhet-Dhaka and the
Guwahati-Paikan-Dalu.
Development of the above routes will be very beneficial for international trade
and commerce, industry, and will also create new employment opportunities.
e. Connectivity with Tibetan Autonomous Region: The NH-52 connects the north
bank of the Brahmaputra with Arunachal Pradesh. This road can be further
developed and extended to the Tibetan Autonomous Region.
f. Improvement of Railway connectivity from the northeastern region to
neighbouring countries: The possibility of having broad gauge railway
connectivity with Bangladesh through Golokganj in the State may be explored for
economic reasons. The three railway networks the NEFR of India, North Railway
of Myanmar and West Railway of Yunnan are closest to each other at Ledo (Asom),
Myitkyina (Myanmar) and Dali (China). These three networks can be linked to
each other by building Myanmar-India Railway and Unnan-Myanmar Railway, the
former one from Myitkyina to Ledo, being about 480-km long, and the later one
from Dali of Yunnan to Myitkyina of Myanmar, being about 520-km long.
g. Development of Brahmaputra waterways: The Brahmaputra (NW-2) and Ganga
(NW-1) are interconnected through waterways in Bangladesh and the Sunderban
providing an integrated waterway of 3,650 km from Allahabad in UP to Sadiya in
Asom. An Inland Water transit and trade protocol exists between India and
Bangladesh. The existing protocol is extended from time to time in ad hoc
manner. There is need to have a long-term protocol which will enable the
development of required infrastructure of vessels and night navigation devices
etc. by private sector.
Silghat in Asom is likely to be declared as a port of call for evacuation of
petroleum products from the Numaligarh Refinery, and destined for Bangladesh.
In return, Bangladesh should declare Ashuganj as a port of call.
h. Development of airways: Creation of air circuit between Asom as well as the
North-east and Bhutan, Nepal, Bangladesh, Myanmar, Thailand, Singapore and
China will help increase export and tourism from the State. Some of the
international flights can introduce stop-overs at Guwahati and some of the
flights can be extended to Kunming and Yangon from Guwahati.
i. IT and Telecom: Guwahati city needs to be projected as ITES and IT gateway
for which world-class IT infrastructure is the need of the hour. The present
gateway at Kolkata is extremely busy, and for better connectivity, another
gateway in the North-east, preferably at Guwahati having linkage with the
South-east Asian countries, directly, is desirable.
2 Development of infrastructure within the northeastern region: While the
connectivity with the region is developed, a number of other activities would
be require to be undertaken to develop infrastructure within the region.
a. To begin with, an assessment of the export potential of the region will have
to be made through a planned market survey in the neighbouring countries as
well as the export potential of the northeastern States. The identified export
potential will have to be developed and utilized.
Capacity building for entrepreneurs, who will be involved in import-export
business, is of importance, and steps should be taken to provide facilities for
the same.
b. Critical road/bridges connectivity from export-oriented units to the nearest
national highway/river port will be required to be developed. To develop the
Tezpur-Tawang tourist circuit, a shorter cut road from Tezpur to Tawang could
be developed. Connectivity to all the important places of tourist interest
could be developed with the main air, railway and road networks.
c. These units will also required stable and quality power supply for which
necessary infrastructure to augment existing generation, transmission,
distribution will be required. Government of India should allocate adequate
quantity of power from the upcoming hydro projects in Bhutan to Asom as a
mechanism of regional resource sharing.
d. Considering the immense scope for export of medicinal herbs, processed food
and adequate facilities for research and development will be required for
efficient utilization of agro-resources.
e. Necessary trading infrastructure in terms of opening of custom stations at
various locations will be required. The existing land custom stations at
Sutarkandi, Mankachar and Daranga need to be upgraded and the phase-II proposal
of Sutarkandi submitted by the Government should be approved. Moreh in Manipur
needs to be operationalized and the law-and-order situation there needs to be
made conducive for trading.
f. Issue of declaration of Ashuganj as a port of call should be taken up with
Bangladesh.
Meghalaya Chief Minister Dr DD Lapang highlighted that Meghalaya was the only
State which had conducted a public debate to decide the priorities of the State
under the Look East Policy on September 23 this year.
Dr Lapang stressed the need to build close historical and cultural ties between
the people of the North-east and the South-east Asian people. Dr Lapang spoke
of the potentially adverse effects of economic isolation, of inadequate
infrastructure and lack of markets for primary commodities, industrial products
and surplus agricultural produce.
He also referred to the positive outcome of his participation in the Investment
Opportunities Week held at Bangkok, and the fact that Meghalaya was able to
project itself as a peaceful, vibrant and investor-friendly State. He said it
is important that the perspective of the people, and their needs and
aspirations are considered. Care should be taken to ensure that the free trade
agreement does not affect the interest of the northeastern region adversely, he
added.
For Meghalaya, the immediate areas of international interface is with
Bangladesh, Dr Lapang said, adding that infrastructure for trade was, however,
inadequate and must be augmented.
He urged the Centre to help transform the national highways and roads, and to
upgrade airports at Umroi and Baljek. He suggested that the alternative rail
route, skirting the southern border of Meghalaya, should be taken up for survey.
Dr Lapang also spoke of the growing horticultural activity in the State, and
the potential for tourism, as areas of opportunity. He said that tourism would
benefit from doing away with restrictive practices for foreign tourists, such
as the reporting requirements on arrival. He asked for a diversification of
cultural interface, through visits of cultural troupes, and the opening of a
tourist office at Dhaka. On a positive note, he said that the State Government
had taken steps to establish a single-point interface for potential foreign
investors and for trade-related queries.
He suggested that the Centre intensify efforts to commence bus services from
Shillong to Dhaka and from Tura to Mymensingh, and provide transit access
through Bangladesh for our produce and our imports as well as open a visa
office at Shillong. He asked for the reopening of border haats.
The Chief Minister spoke strongly of the need to improve our infrastructure,
especially roads, and referred to the new power policy of the State which would
improve prospects of attracting investment in this sector. On roads, the Chief
Minister urged the Centre to accelerate the upgrade of highways and major
roads, and to take the railway line along the border and also up to Shilling
and Tura.
He also strongly advocated the need to set up a centre of excellence for
linguistics at Shillong where South-east Asian languages, along with English,
can be taught. This can become an excellent centre of international studies
drawing response from all the northeastern States and the South-east Asian
countries.
(The Sentinel,01.11.2007)
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