Girls performing folk dances during the North East Youth Leadership Fest

NEW DELHI: The northeastern states will, for the first time, play a big role during the India-ASEAN summit in January.

Last week, Sushma Swaraj called in the governors of all seven northeastern states and the lieutenant-general of Andaman & Nicobar islands for a unique meeting – to begin the process of integration of domestic and foreign policy. Raveesh Kumar , MEA spokesperson tweeted “The interactive discussion will feed into the deliberations at the ASEAN-India Commemorative Summit 2018 … featuring an enhanced role for the Northeastern Region, India's gateway to the ASEAN.” Sources said all governors came with suggestions and these have been prioritized into short and medium term deliverables.

Bhutan will be the first country to open up a consulate in Guwahati, but India will open up Guwahati for select countries like Japan as well. Japan is becoming a major development partner for India’s northeast transformation programme. At some point, India’s BBIN initiative will segue into its Act East policy. Within MEA, the new initiative will be run by several departments from the States division to ICCR , officials in charge of Bangladesh and Myanmar and the big “South” division that is in charge of the Asean region. Outside MEA, the state governments and home ministry will be roped in, said officials.

It’s not only the Republic Day celebrations that will see action with the presence of all the ASEAN heads of government – for the first time, Assam, with a BJP government will host an ‘Invest Assam’ summit, on the lines of Vibrant Gujarat, which will see heads of state of several ASEAN countries hoping to create economic linkages.

The leadership push is being given by president Ram Nath Kovind , who also travelled to three northeastern states last week. Opening the northeast development summit, Kovind said, “if you consider the hundreds and thousands of years of civilisation, far from being a frontier, the Northeast has been at the heart of Indian imagination. And if you take South Asia and Southeast Asia as a continuum – as it has been perceived for most of history – then the Northeast is right in the middle of it. … Its geographical location makes it the obvious gateway to India, linking the vast economies of the Indian subcontinent and of today’s ASEAN countries.” That is the crux of this new outreach.

On top of the list is connectivity. In the huge effort to integrate India’s domestic and foreign policy, the big constraint has been undoubtedly the lack of land connectivity within the region and with the neighbouring countries. “We have always regarded these areas through a security prism, but we are slowly changing our outlook. As the security challenges in these states have diminished, we are putting economic development and linkages on top of our list of priorities,” said officials.

That’s not easy. But officials said after several years of missteps, the trilateral highway through Myanmar is in “implementation mode” and should open by 2020. The same goes for the Kaladan multi-modal project, which is currently lagging because of the unrest in Rakhine. With Bangladesh, the aim is to revive the connectivity linkages that existed before 1965.

Of the six erstwhile rail links between India and Bangladesh, four links connecting West Bengal with Bangladesh have been made operational. In the past few months, two immigration check posts (ICPs) have been cleared along the borders with Myanmar and Bangladesh -- Zorinpui in Lawngtlai district and Kawrpuichhuah in Lunglei district of Mizoram and Suterkandi in Assam is being upgraded into an ICP with Bangladesh. This will facilitate legitimate travel and serve as commercial transit points. Under the Udaan project, officials said, World War II era airports are getting upgraded to enhance air connectivity.

Northeast music and dance groups will travel more, particularly to ASEAN countries. Funds are being earmarked from other departments to upgrade medical colleges and hospitals in Assam and Meghalaya to receive patients from Myanmar and Bangladesh.

Central and state governments will reduce the areas which need an inner line permit to travel in these states, to incentivize tourism. “We used to be a trading and maritime nation, we’re trying to recapture that space,” officials familiar with the development said.

