Responding to Bangladesh interim government’s chief advisor Muhammad Yunus saying that Dhaka is “the only guardian of the ocean” for landlocked Northeast India, Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma Tuesday called the statement “offensive” and “strongly condemnable”.
“Seven states of India, eastern part of India, called seven sisters… they are landlocked country, landlocked region of India. They have no way to reach out to the ocean,” Yunus said during his four-day visit to China last week.
“We are the only guardian of the ocean for all this region. So this opens up a huge possibility. So this could be an extension of the Chinese economy. Build things, produce things, market things, bring things to China, bring it out to the whole rest of the world,” he said.
Sarma stated on X on Tuesday that Yunus’s statement underscores the “persistent vulnerability narrative associated with India’s strategic ‘Chicken Neck’ corridor”.
The North Eastern states of Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur, Meghalaya, Nagaland, Mizoram, Tripura and Sikkim collectively have a 1596 km long international border with Bangladesh, 1395 km with China, 1640 km with Myanmar, 455 km with Bhuan and 97 km with Nepal, but are only connected with the rest of India through a 22 km strip of land called the ‘chicken neck’ corridor.
Sarma argued for developing better transport networks connecting the region with the rest of India, including the development of alternative road routes bypassing the corridor.
“Historically, even internal elements within India have dangerously suggested severing this critical passageway to isolate the Northeast from the mainland physically. Therefore, it is imperative to develop more robust railway and road networks both underneath and around the Chicken’s Neck corridor. Additionally, exploring alternative road routes connecting the Northeast to mainland India, effectively bypassing the Chicken’s Neck, should be prioritised. Though this may pose significant engineering challenges, it is achievable with determination and innovation,” he said.
The chief minister was alluding to police claims that Sharjeel Imam, a former JNU student who was detained for sedition, had advocated for blocking the “chicken neck” during demonstrations against the Citizenship Amendment Act.
“Md. Younis’s provocative remarks should not be dismissed because they reveal deeper strategic considerations and long-standing agendas,” Sarma stated.
