India working on connectivity projects worth $5bn

The Dollar Business Bureau

In a bid to enhance connectivity in the South Asian region, India with the support of the Asian Development Bank is working towards development of two road corridors. The value of these projects, including the road corridors, is $5 billion.

The first corridor will connect India with Nepal, Bangladesh and Bhutan via the ‘chicken neck’ of Northern Bengal, revealed Shaktikanta Das, Economic Affairs Secretary.

While addressing at the South Asia Sub-Regional Economic Cooperation 2025 workshop, Das further revealed that the second corridor will connect India and Myanmar in Manipur.

Integrated check posts at India-Myanmar border and other key border areas such as Bangladesh, Bhutan, Nepal will be established soon. The key border areas will also undergo improvisations in Land Customs Stations for easy mobility of goods.

Meanwhile, several projects in the power sector are also under the pipeline. NTPC by joining hands with Bangladesh Power Development Board is likely to develop a 1320 MW Maitree Thermal Power Project.

With the support of a credit line worth $64 million between Exim Bank and Myanmar Foreign Trade Bank, the Power Grid Corporation of India is under plans to develop three 230 kv transmission lines in Myanmar.

India is in talks with Afghanistan, Pakistan and Turkmenistan for 1,680 km mega gas pipeline connecting four nations, said Das while adding that considering the request of the participating nations, ADB approved to announce a secretariat for the project soon.

The Indian government has recently initiated a major port-development dynamic initiative called the ‘Sagarmala’ to create, improve and modernize the existing port facilities and increase the capacity and draught at ports. As 90% of India’s trade by volume and 70% by value move through ports and the major ones play a key role in facilitating the trade. On the anvil for creating ports are the Durgarajpatnam port in AP and Sagar Island in West Bengal. These ports will lead to better trade with the AEAN countries.

India is also developing the East Coast Economic Corridor (ECEC) with ADB and Vizag Chennai Industrial Corridor (VCIC) is part of the first phase development. ECEC has a broad role in generating domestic output, create employment, facilitate the movement of the country’s natural resources like iron ore and coal and also serve as a hub for extractive and downstream industries.