Thai delegation starts survey on trade potential and connectivity
Source: Hueiyen News Service
Imphal, March 26 2011:
A 13-member high level Thai delegation, who arrived in Imphal yesterday on a three-day visit, visited Moreh and Tamu of Myanmar today as part of a survey on trade potential and connectivity between India, Myanmar and Thailand.
The team led by Tharadol Thongruang, in-charge Thai-Myanmar Traders, Ministry of Commerce and also member of sub-committee on regional links and special economic zone, Thai Parliament arrived here yesterday from Thailand via Kolkata.
As soon as they arrived at Imphal, they held meetings with the officials of the state government and had discussions on the problems and prospects of international trade activities between Thailand, Myanmar and India with Moreh as trade centre.
Apart from meeting with representatives of the Union of Myanmar Border Trade Chamber of Commerce at Tamu town in Myanmar, they also inspected trade infrastructures being developed at Moreh like the Integrated Check Post and Moreh Trade Centre today.
They also met with persons related with border trades there.
Officials of the state government accompanied them in the visit.
The team will visit Kangla fort and Nupi Keithel tomorrow before leaving for their onward journey to Guwahati, an official source said.
Considering that improved connectivity between the NE region and the Southeast Asian countries will not only help the region to discover a larger market, but also will integrate India with the the ASEAN countries.
A project, Trilateral Highway Project between India, Myanmar and Thailand, is being taken up to this end.
The project is under construction.
Thailand and India in fact have completed construction of the link roads on either side.
The Trilateral Highway between India, Myanmar, and Thailand under the Mekong-Ganga cooperation initiative that started in 2005 is an attempt to promote road connectivity between the three countries which will expand trade, tourism, and people-to-people contact.
The 1360 km Trilateral Highway, built at a cost of US$700 million, runs from Moreh in India to Maw Sot in Thailand through Bagan in Myanmar.
The expeditious completion of the trilateral highway has ensured connectivity of Moreh, with the Diphu-Karong-Imphal- Moreh railway track.
The highway project also undertook the task of constructing a road from Kanchanburi in Thailand to Dawei in Myanmar, and the development of the deep seaport at Dawei.
These are some of the visible efforts undertaken by Indian government to promote its linkages with the ASEAN region.
The trilateral highway project is considered to be an important element of India's endeavour to reach out to ASEAN.
A Delhi-Hanoi rail network can prove extremely cost effective and convenient for transportation of goods and people.
India has undertaken projects like the Jiribam-Imphal-Moreh line and the Tamu- Kalay-Segyi line in Myanmar.
One of the primary motives behind India's connectivity diplomacy with the Southeast Asian region is to cultivate Northeast India.
The development deficit in the Northeast remains a challenge for the Indian government.
Most of the northeast produce was traditionally traded in markets in neighbouring countries, a trend which the partition of India disrupted.
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