Construction of Railway Line upto China Border

[RISING SUN]

Strategic push: India explores feasibility of connecting Tawang with rail network
Giving strategic interests a further push, the Centre is exploring feasibility to connect India-China border district Tawang in Arunachal Pradesh with the railway network+ . The Centre has asked Minister of State for Railways Manoj Sinha and Minister of State for Home Affairs Kiren Rijiju, who is also an MP from Arunachal West seat, to explore the feasibility of the rail network in the remote area. The two ministers will tour the state on Saturday to study the viability of connecting Tawang with Bhalukpong which is the last station of Indian Railways on Assam-Arunachal Pradesh border. Sinha and Rijiju will be visiting Arunachal Pradesh from April 1 in connection with commencement of final location survey of new broad gauge line connecting Bhalukpong with Tawang which is a distance of 378 kilometres.

It takes 18 hours from Guwahati in Assam to reach Tawang through road. Guwahati is the nearest major city and citizens of Tawang depend on it for any medical emergency. Other new broad guage railway lines which will be part of the survey will be 249-kilometre North Lakhimpur-Bame -Silapathar which is between Pasighat airport and Rupa in Arunachal Pradesh. Sinha and Rijiju will also be meeting citizens, elected representatives and senior railway officers during the visit.

Tawang is of immense strategic importance to India as it is located on the China-India border and China has been laying claim to it. China claims Arunachal Pradesh as part of Tibet and routinely objects to any visit by top Indian leaders, officials and diplomats to the area. It had recently objected to a proposed visit of the Dalai Lama to Arunachal Pradesh. Dalai Lama says Chinese hardliners have parts of brain missing

The government has said the Dalai Lama is going to visit the state as a religious leader+ and there is no reason to stop him as his followers are demanding he should come. Tawang was one of the regions where Indian Army had come under attack from China in the 1962 war. Ignoring China's protests, the government had earlier allowed then US ambassador to India Richard Verma and Tibetan spiritual leader Karmapa Ogyen Trinley Dorje's visit to Arunachal Pradesh last year.
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/...ail-network/articleshow/57922529.cms?from=mdr

 

[tw00tw00]

Will this be built in the next 30 to 40 years?

 

[RISING SUN]

China asks India for caution, restraint on Tawang rail link
China today asked India to exercise "restraint" on its plan to link the strategic border district of Tawang in Arunachal Pradesh with a railway network, saying any "unilateral action" might "complicate" the unresolved border issue.
"We hope that the Indian side can exercise caution, show restraint and refrain from unilateral actions that might further complicate the question so as to create a sound condition for enhancing mutual trust between China and India and promoting proper resolution of the boundary question," the Chinese Foreign Ministry said.

"China's position on eastern section of the China-India boundary is consistent and clear. At present, the two sides are working to resolve the territorial dispute through negotiation and consultation," the ministry told PTI in a written reply following a query about reports that India was exploring possibilities to link Tawang with a railway network.
China has in recent days upped its rhetoric on claims to Arunachal Pradesh, which it says is Southern Tibet, and even warned India of "serious damage" to ties if New Delhi allows Tibet's exiled spiritual leader the Dalai Lama to visit the state next week.
The ministry yesterday warned New Delhi that the visit of the Dalai Lama, the highest figure in Tibetan Buddhism, will "come down to India to make a choice".

Tawang, which happens to be the birthplace in 1683 of the sixth Dalai Lama, is at the centre of Tibetan Buddhism and a friction point between India and China relations.
India and China are in discussion to resolve their border dispute that covers the 3,488-km-long Line of Actual Control (LAC). While Beijing claims Arunachal as part of Southern Tibet, India asserts that the dispute also covers the 'Aksai Chin' area, which was occupied by China during the 1962 war.
The ministry said the two sides have "agreed that pending final settlement, both sides will work together to properly manage the dispute" and preserve peace in the border areas.

The Chinese reaction today to the possible rail network and the Dalai Lama's visit to Tawang was the third time in recent weeks the foreign ministry has aired its objections.
Tawang has immense strategic value to India due to its location. The hilly region close to the Sino-India border was also in the news earlier this month when Dai Bingguo, a former Chinese Special Representative for India-China border talks, said the border dispute can be resolved if New Delhi accepts Beijing's claim over Tawang.
"If the Indian side takes care of China's concerns in the eastern sector of their border, the Chinese side will respond accordingly and address India's concerns elsewhere," Dai had told the Chinese media in an interview.
But the proposal was rejected as impractical by Indian officials as Tawang is an integral part of Arunachal Pradesh and has sent representatives to Parliament in every election since 1950.

Lian Xiangmin, Director of contemporary research of China's state-run Tibetology Research Centre, last month said, "Tawang is part of Tibet and Tibet is part of China. So Tawang is part of China. There is not much problem here."
India, giving a push to its strategic interests, is exploring the feasibility to link Tawang with a rail network. The government has asked Minister of State for Railways Manoj Sinha and Minister of State for Home Affairs Kiren Rijiju, who is also a Member of Parliament from Arunachal West seat, to explore the feasibility of a rail network in the remote area.
The two ministers will tour the state to study the viability of connecting Tawang with Bhalukpong - the last station of the Railways on Assam-Arunachal Pradesh boundary at a distance of 378 kms - and to commence the final location survey of a new broad gauge line connecting the two cities.
It takes 18 hours from Guwahati in Assam to reach Tawang by road. Guwahati is the nearest major city and Tawang residents depend on it for medical emergencies.

The other broad gauge railway line that will be part of their survey will be the 249-kilometre North Lakhimpur-Bame- Silapathar section, which is between Pasighat airport and Rupa in Arunachal.
http://economictimes.indiatimes.com...-on-tawang-rail-link/articleshow/57963874.cms

 

[Hindustani78]

He also called for making the land custom office at Nampong on the Myanmar border functional as early as possible.

http://indianexpress.com/article/in...r-reopening-stilwell-road-to-myanmar-4610692/


Arunachal Pradesh deputy chief minister Chowna Mein on Wednesday called for reopening the historic Stilwell Road between India and Myanmar through the Pangsau Pass and suggested setting up designate towns in either countries as “sister towns” to promote culture and business between the two sides. He also called for making the land custom office at Nampong on the Myanmar border functional as early as possible.

Making this suggestion, Mein asked Vikram Misri, Indian ambassador to Myanmar currently on a four-day visit to the Northeastern region, to take up steps to upgrade the Currency Exchange Office and Trade Center at the border point between Arunachal Pradesh and Myanmar to facilitate movement of people and border trade between the two countries.

The deputy chief minister said that the Centre should take steps to set up good hospitals and educational institutions on the Indian side of the border so that people from across the border from Myanmar could also avail the benefits. “Reopening the Stilwell Road and Pangsau Pass will also give a big boost to tourism in the Northeastern region in general and Arunachal Pradesh in particular,” he said.

“Once established, the two sister towns on either side will act as centres for cultural exchange as well as trade between the people of Arunachal Pradesh and Myanmar. Regular cultural exchange programmes can also be held in both towns,” he told Ambassador Misri in Itanagar.

The 1726-km Stilwell Road, built by the Allied Army under supervision of General Joseph Stilwell of the US Army during the Second World War, connects Ledo in Assam to Kunming in China through Myanmar. While 71 km is in India, 1033 km is in Myanmar and the remainder 632 km is in China.

“The Land Custom Station at Nampong has been lying defunct and non-functional for many years due to less trade activities from the Burmese side. It is very important to for both countries to take steps to ensure meaningful and consistent trade. This will economically benefit the people of both Northeastern India and Myanmar,” the deputy chief minister said.

Mein also requested Ambassador Misri to facilitate issue of VISA to the people of Myanmar at the Integrated Check Post at Moreh in Manipur and in other border points as a sizeable number of Buddhist pilgrims from Myanmar were willing to come to India.