Ashik Kabir
The NER is blessed with a great deal of resources in terms of biodiversity, immense hydroenergy
potential, oil and gas, coal, limestone, forest wealth, fruits and vegetables, flowers, herbs
and aromatic plants, rare and diverse flora and fauna. Thus, it has the potential to become a
commercial hub and tourist paradise. There are also sources of energy available such as oil,
natural gas, coal, limestone. It also has India‟s largest perennial water system – the Brahamaputra
river, which can be utilized for energy, irrigation and transportation. The fertile soil in the river
valley is a veritable storehouse of horticultural products and rare forest products.
The NER India would largely benefit from increased trade relations with its neighbors, especially
Bangladesh. The NER shares an unique relationship with the nation emanating from cultural,
emotional and historical heritage. India and Bangladesh share 4096 km long international border,
out of this almost 1880 km is with the NER , 1434 km is the land border and 446 km is riverbased
tract. Assam, Meghalaya, Tripura and Mizoram share international borders with
Bangladesh. Out of these states, with the exception of Meghalaya, they share both land and riverbased
borders with Bangladesh. Tripura and Mizoram have the longest land and river-based
borders with Bangladesh. A closer economic integration and connectivity with Bangladesh
would not only reduce the economic isolation but also make the ties stronger with the mainland
of India.
Connectivity of NER:
The NER is landlocked and is connected with mainland India through a 22 km wide stretch of
land called the Chicken‟s Neck. This route passes through hilly terrain with steep roads and
multiple hairpin bends9. The distance from Agartala to Kolkata is 1650 km and 2,637 km to New
Delhi via Shilong and Guahati. However, astonishingly the distance between Agartala and
Kolkata via Bangladesh is just about 350 km. Moreover, on an average , the distance between
important cities of Bangladesh and northeast India is 20-200 km. Bangladesh can act as an
important source of connectivity – rail, road and river-based between NER and mainland India.
That will be a win-win situation for India. As the transportation from mainland India to NER will
be cheaper and Bangladesh will be benefitting economically by providing these facilities to
India. Tripura recently faced a shortage of food grains. Its location was difficult to access and the
Food Corporation of India (FCI) came to an agreement with Bangladesh to use their Ashuganj
river port for smooth and easy transportation of grains to Tripura.
Trade Between Bangladesh and NER
The pattern of the border trade is determined by the resource industry linkage between
Bangladesh and NER. There some critical minerals available in NER which have a huge demand
in Bangladesh. So, the exports from NER are totally different from the trade that Bangladesh has
with mainland India. The country lacks minerals like coals and limestone which are imported
from NER. In return, NER imports finished goods from Bangladesh. The major NER exports to
Bangladesh include raw materials like coal, limestone , stone chips, bamboo, and the major
imports include finished products like cement, plastic, goods, readymade garments, process food
and soft beverages. This provides a strong case for expansion of trade between the two regions.
Potential sectors for cooperation:
Energy:
The Northeast Region has hydropower energy of more than 63,000MW. It requires investment in
the hydroelectricity sector for construction and operation. Large unutilized power generation
in NER can help Bangladesh who lack power. So, cooperation in this sector can bring benefits
for both regions here.
Tourism:
There are unlimited opportunities in NER for tourism. The climate of this region is moderate
throughout the year, exotic fauna and flora, scenic beauty, unique performing arts, cultural
diversities, music, handicrafts and cuisine. Undoubtedly this place is a heaven for the tourists.
The region is consider as high value for its hill and adventure tourism. The NER has all the
possibilities to become a tourist attraction for the neighboring countries, especially for
Bangladesh.
Manufacturing:
Indian companies have lot of opportunities to invest in Bangladesh and set up manufacturing
units in Bangladesh, where they can capitalize Bangladesh‟s low cost industrious labour and
source raw materials from NER of India. Besides sale in Bangladesh, the manufactured products
can be exported to NER of India and the rest of the world. By this way the exports of raw
materials can be matched by the imports of manufactured products from Bangladesh. With this
pattern of trade, when it is done in large scale, would enable Bangladesh to export higher value
added products and can thus help reduce its large trade imbalance with India.
Border Haats:
Before the partition, trade along India- Bangladesh border had been going on through border
haats.
It was terminated due to the partition. Though it resumed again after a few years. It was
stopped soon after Bangladesh got liberation from the Pakistan. To revive the old tradition of
border trade, and to provide better market accessibility to products produced by the people
residing nearby the border, both the governments have agreed to reopen the Border haats.
If the relationship between Bangladesh and NER India worked out, not only both the countries but also the whole South-Asia will be benefited. The connectivity of Bangladesh and NER will connect South-Asia with South East Asia which will bring a new game changer determinant in the regional development.
Ashikk992@gmail.com
Student of MA
Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi