Eastward Ho!

The Kaladan Multi-Modal Transit Project will provide an alternative route between India’s landlocked Northeast to Southeast Asia. As the name implies it is multi-modal and engages a range of infrastructure from roads, bridges and floating barrages. Once completed it will be a game changer for the Northeast region’s access to ASEAN and Southeast Asia through Myanmar to provide an alternative route between landlocked Northeast and the rest of India as well. It is currently served by the narrow Siliguri corridor. The Kaladan project starts from West Bengal through the Bay of Bengal to Myanmar’s Sittwe port where it meets the Kaladan river which flows from Myanmar to Mizoram ultimately connecting the Northeast. Several hurdles such as political disturbances, difficulty in acquiring land for the project and the global pandemic of 2020 had caused delays in completing this project. In the first phase   the main purpose was to connect Sittwe port in Myanmar with Haldia in West Bengal t...