The Hindu : National : SAARC connectivity a distant dream

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Monday, Aug 11, 2008
ePaper | Mobile/PDA Version

National

National

SAARC connectivity a distant dream

Sandeep Dikshit

An ADB study had identified over 40 potential linkages

NEW DELHI: India’s dream of ensuring region-wide connectivity among South Asian nations is unlikely to materialise in the near future.

This has forced its diplomats to scale down plans and focus on enhancing connectivity among only a few regional countries. As an alternative strategy, India is keen to open more land trading stations, hoping that there would be demand for more direct transport linkages as commerce grows.

An Asian Development Bank (ADB) study had identified over 40 potential linkages among South Asian Association of Regional Cooperation (SAARC) countries. India, however, is hopeful of only a handful of the proposed road, rail and maritime corridors materialising over the next few years.

Those that are in the realm of possibility include a Colombo-Tuticorin-Kochi ferry service, a freight corridor between Colombo and Chennai, linkage between Phuntsholing in Bhutan and Hashimara and a couple of links with Nepal.

The ADB study requisitioned after the Islamabad summit four years ago identified 10 regional road corridors, five regional rail corridors, two regional inland waterway corridors, 10 maritime gateways and 16 aviation gateways.

Reality dawned on India after it hosted the first meeting of the transport ministers and an inter-governmental group on transport and technical committee.

SAARC members identified just nine surface corridors for implementation. Even among these, the fate of two is uncertain since the terminal point is in Bangladesh which is resisting further negotiations.

Even at the recent SAARC summit in Colombo, little progress could be made despite the rhetoric of having stimulated this eight-nation regional grouping to move from the “declaratory to the implementation phase.” To keep the momentum going on the discussions, India has circulated a draft motor vehicles agreement and a draft railway agreement.

It is now hoping that the second Transport Ministers’ meeting scheduled in Colombo in September would be able to make some headway.

While India engages with recalcitrant countries such as Bangladesh and Pakistan, which have their national sensitivities to contend with, it is planning to set up a Land Ports Management Authority to give a fillip to border trade.

Work will begin soon on upgrading the land customs stations with Nepal (Raxaul) and Pakistan (Wagah) while Myanmar (Moreh) will be taken up later.

Once land acquisition issues are sorted out, the customs station with Bangladesh (Petrapole) will also be modernised.

Though no funds have been allotted so far, the modernisation of these four land customs stations is estimated to cost Rs. 400 crore. India then plans to modernise nine other trading points — six with Bangladesh and three with Nepal.

New Delhi is also examining requests from State governments for additional land customs stations at the international borders. West Bengal, Tripura, Meghalaya and Assam have asked for nine additional trading points with Bangladesh.

Thus, even as the goal of physical land and marine connectivity eludes SAARC, diplomats expect to pursue regional and sub-regional developments projects, put teeth into the Mutual Legal Assistance Treaty, accelerate the South Asian University, agree on the concept of trade in services and promote people-to-people exchanges.

Printer friendly page
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

National