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Opinion National Interest PoV 50-Word Edit

ThePrint On Camera Videos In Pictures

Society & Culture Around Town Book Excerpts Vigyapanti The Dating Story

More Judiciary Education YourTurn Work With Us Campus Voice

Why Siliguri Corridor is top priority for Suvendu Adhikari govt. New border nexus brewing

In recent weeks, the new Suvendu Adhikari govt has expedited road, rail, and India-Bangladesh border fencing projects to strengthen the vulnerable Chicken’s Neck.

Hoardings change with every political transition, and it is understandable that Suvendu Adhikari’s billboards and posters will now dominate public spaces in West Bengal. However, this time, there is a change with a far deeper strategic impact: the strengthening of the Siliguri Corridor, and topmost priority being given to the acquisition of land for border roads and fencing.

In this column, we shall examine the steps being taken to strengthen the 60-kilometre-long and 22-kilometre-wide Siliguri Corridor, which connects India’s eight North East states with the rest of the country. Colloquially called the ‘Chicken’s Neck’, this narrow passage has always posed a serious challenge.

Wedged between Bangladesh to the south and the west, and Tibet (China) to the north, the Siliguri Corridor also links India to neighbouring Nepal, Bangladesh, and Bhutan, as well as to the Chumbi Valley, the highly strategic and contested territory located at the tri-junction of India (Sikkim), China (Tibet), and Bhutan. The corridor shares borders with Nepal, Bhutan, and Bangladesh, and is only 130 km away from the Chumbi Valley.

Also Read: Will Suvendu Adhikari’s massive welfare schemes outdo Mamata’s doles? It’s a clash of legacies

Highways, high-speed railways & an underground rail link to Assam

In recent weeks, three important decisions connected to the corridor have been taken.

Last month, the West Bengal government gave ‘in-principle’ approval for handing over seven stretches of national highways to the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) and the National Highways and Infrastructure Development Corporation Ltd (NHIDCL), paving the way for long-pending infrastructure works on key road corridors in the........

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