Ensconced in New Delhi since 2014, in seven out of the eight States in the northeast, and now in West Bengal too, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is poised to influence geopolitics in the entire eastern region comprising Nepal, Bangladesh, and Myanmar.
Its electoral triumph in large and populous West Bengal on Monday (4) adds to its political muscle considerably. West Bengal borders Bangladesh, a country with which India is ill at ease since the ignominious departure of its protégé Sheikh Hasina in August 2024.
India’s east is geopolitically sensitive. The most vulnerable area is the Siliguri Corridor (also known as the Chicken’s Neck) which is in North Bengal at the trijunction of Nepal, Bhutan, India, and Bangladesh. The thin corridor is the only land route connecting India’s mainland with its northeastern States of Assam, Meghalaya, Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland, Manipur, and Mizoram. Any disruption in the corridor could severely impact India’s military mobility and logistical access to its eastern territories.
The 2017 Sino-Indian military standoff at Doklam at the trijunction between Sikkim (an Indian State), Bhutan, and China showed the Chicken Neck’s vulnerability. Any escalation of the conflict here could have allowed China to threaten the Siliguri Corridor further south.
There has been a long-standing dispute between India and China over Arunachal Pradesh since the 1962 Sino-Indian War. Last year, the Chinese Ministry of Civil Affairs announced that Arunachal Pradesh was a part of ‘Zangnan’ (southern Tibet). But India’s External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar dismissed China’s claims.
Insurgencies in northeastern States
For decades, there had been insurgencies in India’s northeastern region, fuelled by a mix of economic underdevelopment, historical grievances, and foreign meddling. While New Delhi has managed to broker ceasefire agreements with the National Socialist Council of Nagaland – Isak-Muivah (NSCN-IM) and United National Liberation Front (UNLF), others like the People’s Liberation Army of Manipur remain active.
Multiple reports indicate that China has supplied weapons to Myanmar’s ethnic armed organisations United Wa State Army and Arakan Army. A part of the Chinese supplies had been smuggled across the porous Indo-Myanmar border to insurgent groups in India’s northeast. Furthermore, United Liberation Front of Asom (Independent) leader Paresh Baruah, who continues to pursue the goal of establishing an independent Assam, is believed to be operating from China.
Reports suggest that for many decades, China’s People’s Liberation Army has been offering military training to Naga and Mizo rebel groups in Kunming.
How is India preparing to meet the challenge?
India has been beefing up its defences in the northeast to meet any challenge from China and its allies in the region. The Indian Army will, between 18 and 31 May, host contingents from nearly a dozen countries for the maiden edition of Exercise PRAGATI, which is an acronym for Partnership of Regional Armies for Growth and Transformation in the Indian Ocean Region.
The exercise is touted as a “significant military outreach under India’s Act East policy”. But the actual intention of the programme is to strengthen India’s defences against perceived threats from China and Bangladesh, with Pakistan also thrown in as a partner.
Although India has professed friendship with the incumbent Tarique Rahman Government in Bangladesh, it is still not sure if a future government will be as accommodating to India as he appears to be. India has not forgotten the preceding Muhammad Yunus Government’s dalliance with Pakistan. Yunus allowed a Pakistani military delegation to visit the Lalmonirhat airbase in Bangladesh, not far from the Siliguri Corridor.
As part of its military posturing, India will be holding the two-week multi-national PRAGATI exercise at the Foreign Training Node in Umroi, Meghalaya. Participants will include Bhutan, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, the Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia, Cambodia, and Laos, among others. Significantly, the exercise excludes Bangladesh, although it belongs to the east. Perhaps Bangladesh is still not considered a reliable defence partner.
Both Bangladesh and Myanmar have been grappling with political instability, with Bangladesh experiencing political turmoil and Myanmar struggling with ethnic conflicts in the north. Tensions in these regions have also invariably resulted in severe cross-border repercussions on India’s northeastern States, especially in Mizoram, Manipur, and Nagaland. These include arms trafficking and financial aid for insurgent groups on the border.
Beijing’s steady expansion of influence in India’s northeastern periphery includes projects like the China-Myanmar Economic Corridor in Myanmar, hydropower developments in Nepal, and infrastructure and military investments in Bangladesh. New Delhi feels that China is on the path of creating a network of dependencies that could disrupt India’s regional ambitions.
In Myanmar, China is constructing the Kyaukphyu Deep Sea Port and a Special Economic Zone (SEZ) in Rakhine State, which is only 65 nautical miles away from the India-backed and invested Sittwe Port near the Indian State of Mizoram. Once this SEZ is completed, it can overshadow New Delhi’s investments because of its larger capacity and will provide China with a competitive maritime presence in the Indian Ocean Region.
The recent announcement of a Chinese-backed hydropower project on the lower reaches of the Brahmaputra River has also caused serious apprehensions within India’s strategic community and is estimated to pose significant risks to the region’s water security. Given that the project is expected to impact the flow of water coming into the Indian States of Arunachal Pradesh and Assam, Chinese construction of the dam could lead to potential flood risks, exacerbate water scarcity, and severely affect the agricultural practices of local communities.
Furthermore, China is indirectly exploiting India’s Northeastern Region (NER) economy through its extensive economic influence. Cheap Chinese goods – ranging from garments and electronics to automobiles – have been flooding the region, not through direct trade routes but via third party countries, particularly Myanmar.
India’s development projects in NER
To win over the people of the northeast, India is building railways and roads. Sixty-four percent of the completed rail tracks have been electrified. In the Union Budget 2025–’26, India allocated a huge amount for new railways and roadways in this area.
There is also the North East Special Infrastructure Development Scheme to focus on physical infrastructure ranging from water supply, power, and connectivity to social infrastructure such as education and health. Japan had invested ¥ 231 billion (till June 2022).
Projects such as the Imphal-Mandalay-Muse Trilateral Highway Project connecting Manipur with Thailand via highways in Myanmar aim to connect India’s northeasternmost State with Thailand’s Mae Sot. India is collaborating with Bangladesh to develop Inland Water Transport (IWT) on the National Waterway 2 (Brahmaputra River), the Khulna-Mongla Port rail line, and the Agartala-Akhaura cross-border railway line.
Defences beefed up
According to defencesecurityasia.com, India has deployed its cutting edge Russian-built S-400 Triumf long-range air defence system to the Siliguri Corridor. The positioning of the S-400 system – renowned for its ability to simultaneously engage multiple aerial targets at ranges exceeding 400 km – is viewed as a calibrated response to intensifying aerial activity by China.
During the interim Government’s time in Bangladesh, New Delhi’s security establishment was alarmed by the frequency and complexity of Chinese and Bangladeshi air manoeuvres along their respective borders with the Siliguri Corridor, interpreting them as probing gestures with strategic undertones.
India has also implemented a multilayered air defence architecture across the Siliguri Corridor, incorporating the indigenously developed Akash medium-range system, Short Range Air Defence (SHORAD) batteries, and Very Short Range Air Defence (VSHORAD) assets to neutralise low-flying threats.
This integrated air defence grid is designed to detect, track, and intercept incoming aerial platforms ranging from stealth drones to cruise missiles, ensuring constant surveillance and round-the-clock combat readiness.
At the heart of India’s ground-based military presence in the region is the Trishakti Corps, headquartered in Sukna in Siliguri. The corps is equipped with T-90 Bhishma main battle tanks, elite mechanised infantry units, and a diversified artillery arsenal.
Parallel to these conventional capabilities, India’s doctrinal response to Chinese military assertiveness is embodied in the Brahmastra Corps – the country’s first dedicated mountain strike corps, headquartered in Panagarh in West Bengal. This corps was conceived as a rapid deployment and counter-offensive formation designed to conduct deep-strike operations across rugged Himalayan terrain along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) with China.
With two infantry divisions, independent armoured brigades, and specialised air defence and helicopter aviation units under its command, the Brahmastra Corps forms a critical pillar of India’s deterrence architecture in the eastern theatre.
In a flashpoint event last year, India reportedly issued a stern warning to Bangladesh after a Turkish-made Bayraktar TB2 drone was operated by the Bangladesh military.
The drone was reportedly launched from the Tejgaon airbase in Dhaka and operated by the 67th Army of Bangladesh as part of a routine Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance (ISR) mission, underscoring the evolving surveillance dynamics along the border. Bangladesh had procured 12 Bayraktar TB2 Medium-Altitude, Long-Endurance (MALE) drones from Türkiye, with six units confirmed operational, marking a significant enhancement in Dhaka’s tactical ISR capabilities.
More concerning for India was Bangladesh’s reported plan to acquire up to 32 JF-17 Thunder fighter jets – an export-oriented, fourth-generation multirole platform jointly developed by the Pakistan Aeronautical Complex (PAC) and China’s Chengdu Aircraft Industry Group (CAIG).
(The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the writer and do not necessarily reflect the official position of this publication)