Strategically, the Siliguri Corridor is precisely the point where China could hit in case of escalating conflict between the two Asian giants. The China-India border has actually three sections: the western sector between Ladakh and the Chinese-held Aksai Chin, the central sector and the eastern sector dividing Sikkim and Arunachal Pradesh states from Tibet. The Kingdom of Bhutan lies on the northern side of the corridor. With China continuing road and airstrip construction activities on its side of the border, the threat to the Chicken’s Neck is a constant one, as the infrastructure could allow China to mobilise rapidly in the region. It is in the Chumbi Valley, therefore, that the defence of the strategically critical corridor lies. This piece of land is about 60 km in length but a meagre 22 km in width at its narrowest point. The Siliguri corridor is a major strategic vulnerability for India, remaining the only land bridge spanning its eight north-eastern states and the rest of its country. The Kingdom of Sikkim formerly lay on the northern … Strategically, it is the Achilles heel in the defence of almost 2,000 km of borders in the NE states with China and Myanmar. What is the width of siliguri corridor or chickens neck. New satellite imagery supports the claim that not only is the People’s Liberation Army holding ground in Galwan Valley, but has also shored up its positions in the area. The use of Bhutanese territory for the defence of the corridor will attract Chinese punitive action against Bhutan. It’s no less important for Bhutan either, representing a main supply route into the country. In fact, in 2002, the writer Pinaki Bhattacharya had highlighted how the ISI was using the ‘Siliguri Corridor’ as a supply route to provide arms and ammunition via Bangladesh to insurgents in the North East. While the Chumbi Valley is flanked on either side, by Sikkim on its west and Bhutan on the east, Nepal shares a common border with Sikkim and the Chinese and Indian armies are face-to-face along the whole of Arunachal Pradesh. While it may sound bit revolutionary but like Ladakh, Siliguri Corridor needs to be reorganised into UT. ... (Punjab border) to the defence of the corridor. The Siliguri Corridor lies in the Chumbi Valley of Chinese-held Tibetan Autonomous Region that is contiguous to the Indian States of Sikkim and Arunachal Pradesh. India has embarked on a slew of projects, such as construction of India-China Border Roads and Advance Landing Ground (AGLs), Northeastern India connectivity and Look-East transnational connectivity projects to create multiple alternatives to Silliguri corridor, including through Bangladesh and sea, to mitigate the risk of being cut off. Delhi’s strategic nightmare Like most of the borders in South Asia, the Siliguri Corridor, also known as the Chicken’s Neck, is a cartographic relic of the British decolonization process. The deployment of artillery, missiles or anti-aircraft weaponry could further jeopardise India’s efforts to resupply the region in case of war. All land transportation between mainland India and its far northeastern states uses this circuitous corridor, as there is no free-trade agreement between Bangladesh and India. I'm surprised you guys are not supporting india here? The Siliguri Corridor is a narrow stretch of land of about 22 km width, located in West Bengal, that connects India’s northeastern states to the rest of India, with the countries of Bangladesh and Nepal lying on either side of the corridor. Published daily by the It is through the dagger-like formation of the Chumbi Valley that the Chinese People’s Liberation Army can launch an operation to block the Siliguri Corridor and thus delink the whole of the North-east from the rest of India in one massive swipe. New Delhi is now facing China’s ire over its infrastructure projects along the LAC and struggling to resolve issues with Beijing. The Siliguri Corridor was created in 1947 after the partition of Bengal. By an advance of just 130 kilometres, the Chinese military could cut off Bhutan, west Bengal and the north-eastern states of India. The Siliguri Corridor is an especially important and sensitive territory for India, formed by the creation of East Pakistan (now Bangladesh) in 1948. Such is the influence of India in NEpal, Bhutan and BD. So shut the F up. The Siliguri Corridor is heavily patrolled by the Indian Army, the Assam Rifles (the oldest paramilitary force of India), the Border Security Force (BSF) and the West Bengal Police. This thin stretch of land-- also referred to as “Chicken’s Neck”, is extremely Siliguri Corridor. Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman (Photo: PTI) ... Pakyong airport is located nearby the strategic Chumbi Valley in Tibet, the Siliguri Corridor …and Doklam. Militarily, the Siliguri Corridor through its road and railway networks, also logistically feeds the Indian formations located in the north eastern theatre which includes III and IV Corps (45000 men in each corps) to take care of the Chinese border in the north and Myanmar and Bangladesh borders in the east and south-west respectively. For India, any Chinese move to encroach further south in the Doklam plateau region would place it perilously close to the narrow and potentially vulnerable Siliguri corridor, the narrow sliver of land which links India’s north-eastern states with the rest of the country. The Siliguri Corridor is strategically important and highly sensitive territory, as it remains the only bridge between the eight north-eastern states of India and the rest of the country. Electrification of this double-track corridor is in progress with assistance from Central Organization for Railway Electrification (CORE). Marcus Franda, "Bangladesh, The First Decades", South Asian Publishers Pvt. For its part, the Indian army has also also declared it is fully prepared to respond to any provocation by China along the LAC. National Highway 10 connects Siliguri to Guwahati in Assam, which is the most critical highway in the region, owing to insurgents operating in the vicinity. U are in no position to take sides nor ur ilkes run the show. This week's links also include the Australian government's settlement deal with asylum seekers and airlines' role in fighting human trafficking. China, which already claims 90,000 square kilometres of territory in India’s north-east, has been a perennial threat to the Siliguri Corridor. This situation arose during the war between India and China in 1962.[4]. Aren't you guys meant to come to the rescue and aid of india in case if war against China or anyone else? The city of Siliguri, in the state of West Bengal, is the major settlement in this area and the central node that connects Bhutan, Nepal, Bangladesh, Sikkim, Darjeeling hills, Northeast India and the rest of India. The partition of India occurred as a result of hostility between the Indian National Congress and the Muslim League. That is … expert commentary on the latest international The predominantly Buddhist Indian state of Arunachal Pradesh shares a 3488-kilometre border with China, which continues to claim the state as a part of Tibet, which China occupied in 1951. The North Bengal Frontier BSF is headquartered at Kadamtala, while one of the five Frontier Headquarters of the Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB) is located in Siliguri. As a sensitive area amidst three countries, the strip is heavily patrolled by the Indian Army, the Assam Rifles, the Border Security Force and the West Bengal Police. The 60-kilometre long and 22-kilometre wide Siliguri Corridor in the Indian state of West Bengal, also known as the “Chicken’s Neck”, connects India’s north-eastern states with the rest of the country. Communist forces overran Saigon on 30 April 1975, marking the end of the Republic of Vietnam.On 2 July 1976, the Provisional Lowy Institute. The PLA is reportedly patrolling in India’s north-eastern states, including Arunachal Pradesh, posing a threat to India at perhaps its most vulnerable point, even amid escalating tensions on the China-India border in the Himalayas. This narrow passage makes defence a serious challenge. Please update this article to reflect recent events or newly available information. Indian officials claim that China is continuing its build-up along the Line of Actual Control (LAC), the de facto border between India and China in the Galwan Valley of eastern Ladakh region. This would also lead to the cutting off of three primary military formations and their units, drastically reducing the supply of equipment and reinforcements to them. international events from experts at the Lowy Institute and The fact that Bhutan lies to the east of the northern limits of the Siliguri corridor creates a dicey situation for India. Not all migrants will be vocal about racism, but what is not recorded by polls might still register in a secret ballot. “If China was to increase its influence over the region , it would allow Chinese forces to access the Siliguri Corridor, known as the “Chicken’s Neck”. The corridor is approximately 33 km wide on the eastern end and 21 km on the western flank1. Read what actually happened in 1971 in Bangladesh Defense Forum pinned site. Wedged between Bangladesh to the south and the west and China to the north, the Siliguri Corridor also links India to neighbouring Nepal, Bangladesh and Bhutan. The region, he pointed out, is important as back in 1967, Indian and Chinese forces had exchanged fire on the border in Sikkim — that was merged as an Indian state in 1975 — and heavy casualties had been reported on both the sides at Nathu-la. The kingdom of Sikkim formerly lay on the northern side of the corridor, until its union with India in 1975 via a publicly held referendum. The Siliguri Corridor is in a highly disadvantageous position in geo-strategic and security terms due to its peculiar geographical features. Distance and Situation: It is a narrow passage with an Achilles Hill which is the point of defense of Siliguri Corridor of the almost 1,000-kilometer border in the North Eastern States with China and Myanmar which is the prime target of the enemy for confrontation. With such a twist, China could change the entire status quo along the LAC and put India under even greater pressure. Stay informed with the latest commentary and analysis on India cannot afford to allow any Chinese presence inside the narrow corridor for … 1971 was a tragedy only for West Pakistan, the East celebrated it as a victory, thoughtless at that time that the real victor was only India. Published events, published daily by the What is the width of siliguri corridor or chickens neck. Arunachal Pradesh was part of British India in 1913–14. But India may have a bigger concern on its hands. About 50 million people in north-east India would be separated from the country. With China continuing road and airstrip construction activities on its side of the border, the threat to the Chicken’s Neck is a constant one, as the infrastructure could allow China to mobilise rapidly in the region. Keep doing that! The narrow Siliguri Corridor, which at one point is less than 27 kilometres (17 mi) wide, remained as the only bridge between the northeastern part of India and the rest of the country. The Chinese presence in Arunachal Pradesh certainly stirs the anxiety of India's defence establishment. A Chinese military advance of less than 130 kilometres (81 mi) would cut off Bhutan, part of West Bengal and all of North-East India, an area containing almost 50 million people. So what exactly happened in 1971, you tell me. Find link is a tool written by Edward Betts.. searching for April 1975 549 found (4859 total) alternate case: april 1975 South Vietnam (7,233 words) exact match in snippet view article find links to article conventional invasion in 1975. What happened in the Galwan Valley and Ladakh on 15 June has received much attention, but what India needs to worry about is saving its Chicken’s Neck from China. The corridor is heavily defended, besides Indian army, the corridor is defended and patrolled by the Assam Rifles, the Border Security Force and the West Bengal Police. China has reportedly increased its military activity with a concentration of soldiers, military vehicles, earth-moving machinery and new structures, including near the same point where Indian and Chinese troops clashed on the night of 15 June and India lost 20 soldiers. The result was the Doklam Standoff between India and China in 2017. [1][2] This gave India a buffer to the north of the Siliguri Corridor and consolidated India's control over the western side of the Chinese Chumbi Valley. Siliguri (Bengali: [ˈʃiliguɽi] ()) is a city which spans areas of the Darjeeling and Jalpaiguri districts in the Indian state of West Bengal.Known as The Gateway of Northeast India, Siliguri is popular for three Ts - tea, timber and tourism. [3] Between Sikkim and Bhutan lies the Chumbi Valley, a dagger-like slice of Tibetan territory. Yet it was the Indian military that liberated you. The formation of East Bengal created a geographical barrier to the northeastern part of India. Lowy Institute, © Copyright 2021 The Siliguri Corridor in north-eastern India poses a major defence challenge. (Col Vinayak Bhat (Retd) is a consultant for India Today. In 2003, in exchange for recognition of China’s sovereignty over Tibet, China agreed to give up all claims to the state of Sikkim in India. Between Sikkim in India and Bhutan lies Chumbi valley, a small part of Tibet. Sky Map, China’s authority on digital maps, has issued an updated version of its official map in which China includes parts of Arunachal Pradesh within its international boundaries. The Kingdom of Bhutan lies on the northern side of the corridor. Ltd, New Delhi, 1982, p-126, Partha S. Ghosh, "Cooperation and Conflict in South Asia", UPL, Dhaka, 1989, p-43, Learn how and when to remove this template message, Central Organization for Railway Electrification, Revolutionary movement for Indian independence, List of West Bengal districts ranked by literacy rate, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Siliguri_Corridor&oldid=1000701623, All Wikipedia articles written in Indian English, Wikipedia articles in need of updating from December 2019, All Wikipedia articles in need of updating, Articles needing additional references from January 2021, All articles needing additional references, Wikipedia articles in need of updating from August 2017, Articles with unsourced statements from December 2017, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License, This page was last edited on 16 January 2021, at 08:11. The Kingdom of Sikkim formerly lay on the northern side of the corridor, until its merging with India in 1975. The Chumbi Valley is that part of Tibet that lies between Sikkim and Bhutan and is proximate to the Siliguri Corridor. With China continuing road and airstrip construction activities on its side of the border, the threat to the Chicken’s Neck is a constant one, as the infrastructure could allow China to mobilise rapidly in the region. It has been depicted as part of Bhutan in the Bhutanese maps since 1961, but it is also claimed by China. [5], Coordinates: .mw-parser-output .geo-default,.mw-parser-output .geo-dms,.mw-parser-output .geo-dec{display:inline}.mw-parser-output .geo-nondefault,.mw-parser-output .geo-multi-punct{display:none}.mw-parser-output .longitude,.mw-parser-output .latitude{white-space:nowrap}26°35′N 88°15′E / 26.583°N 88.250°E / 26.583; 88.250, For the "Chicken's Neck" between northern India and Pakistan, see. Compounding matters is their much-touted collusion, manifesting in China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC). around the world. ... 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