How frontier highway in Arunachal is India’s strategic asset

The work-in-progress frontier highway in Arunachal Pradesh is a strategic asset for India. This project should have seen the light of day in the immediate aftermath of the Sino-Indian War in 1962. The Chinese intention was crystal clear then and even now. It is and was intended to expand territorially and exercise its hegemony in the neighbourhood. India went through unwarranted procrastination over a few decades. This procrastination continued, which risked India’s Himalayan border space.

Decoding the prolonged indecision, S Jaishankar, Minister of External Affairs, called it the era of diffidence. He characterises the current strength of India and its proactiveness, global importance, and determination to protect its border space, come what may, as an era of confidence. He gives credit to the diplomatic heft of India over the last ten years and its keenness to protect its interests and the interests of its friends. Inarguably, India is cautious but not afraid. Protecting its interests is its top priority. Much against the Chinese irritations, India went ahead with its critical project of the frontier highway because it realised the safety of its border space was of great importance.

The geostrategic gravity of this highway emanates from the Chinese brinkmanship in the eastern Himalayas. The Chinese geopolitical weight in the region became evident in the 1950s because, during this period, it annexed Tibet by force, which led to a massive migration of Tibetans, including His Holiness Dalai Lama, to India. Following this geopolitical tension, the Sino-Indian War in 1962 unsettled the region. The Chinese territorial appetite was amplified, and behaved like a regional hegemon. Salami slicing (incremental territorial expansionism), border skirmishes, and cartographic redrafting became its preferred tactics to keep the tension in the region brewing.

Beijing’s expansionist streak has recently been seen in Doklam, Galwan, Tawang, etc. This was responded to in equal measure. For India, territorial integrity is paramount. This resolve is shown in action under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The 1,700 km-long frontier highway along the McMahon Line connecting the border districts of Tawang, East Kameng, Upper Subansiri, West Siang, Upper Siang, Dibang Valley, Lower Dibang Valley, Anjaw, and Changlang in Arunachal Pradesh adjoining Tibet and Myanmar is a geostrategic milestone. It was conceived in 2016 and is expected to be completed in 2027. Work in this direction has started at a quick pace. This shows the urgency and importance India gives to its territorial integrity.

The infrastructural development that China has brought along the McMahon Line is quite extensive. The frontier highway is a precise and direct response to this and to curb China’s irrationality. The highway will become an all-weather road to handle any geopolitical and geostrategic pressure likely to emanate from the other side of the border. From Tawang to Vijayanagar, which covers the entire border space in Arunachal Pradesh, the frontier highway is a milestone in India’s robust preparedness in the eastern Himalayas. The dragon finds a fitting competitor.

The scale with which China develops its infrastructural might, both at the border and in the hinterland, the frontier highway is a geostrategic imperative. The risk these complex infrastructures present leaves no scope for a second thought but to act urgently to protect the territorial integrity of India. The frontier highway manifests India’s right intent and seriousness in addressing the possible dangers that the enemy constantly poses.

The frontier highway will present the required checkmate to Chinese bullying attitudes in the region. Beijing’s reaction to these infrastructural initiatives is not new. It always does this to keep itself relevant in the thick of things. However, it has no business in making any comment as Arunachal Pradesh is an integral part of the sovereign India.

China uses this drama to keep the issue alive and effectively uses its propaganda machinery to develop some geopolitical weight in the region. It presents no hesitation in developing the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) through Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK). It knows the disputed character of PoK and exercises no restraint. Instead, it tutors India on what it does in its sovereign territory. India understands China’s cunning and exercises patience and quietness, making necessary preparations to check the latter’s possible misadventures.

However, the work-in-progress frontier highway will significantly strengthen India’s border infrastructure and seamless connectivity. It will present a significant impetus for encouraging economic engagement in the region. Infrastructure and connectivity have always played a pivotal role in modernising the economy and opening the scope for economic participation.

Therefore, the frontier highway will also be an economic asset, apart from being a strategic masterstroke. This will also develop a connectivity conduit by interlinking the East-West Industrial Corridor Highway and the Trans-Arunachal Highway. It will also discourage migration from the border space to urban areas. The development will become more distributive than concentric. Pressure on the urban space will be primarily eased. The volatilities of the border space and Chinese hegemonic gravity will be minimised because of India’s fully prepared, vigilant presence in the region.

The Myanmar chapter is currently in the doldrums. The Chinese alleged involvement in derailing democratic government there disturbs the geopolitics in the region, which imposes a cloud of uncertainty around India’s infrastructure projects in Myanmar. Given the geopolitical complexity in the region, India makes measured strategic progress and anchors its hold firmly and irreplaceably. Building tunnels, bridges, airports, railroads, highways, etc, has become part of the process that systematically ensures India’s strength and resilience.

On the contrary, China’s determined efforts in building highways, tunnels, bridges, railways, etc, on the Tibetan Plateau explain its preparedness. The skirmishes it indulges in along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) indicate its ulterior motive.

Though Beijing might claim that packing the plateau with high-tech infrastructure is mainly for the economic development of Tibet, the territorial desires embedded in this exercise cannot be ignored. The Nyingchi-Lhasa rail line and highway that Beijing has built, as well as some sections that remain under construction, come close to the McMahon Line. Its concept of reconstituting border villages and a host of other things are symptoms of the region’s complex geopolitics. Chinese brinkmanship has been primarily responsible for the disturbed geopolitics of the region. Much of these crises is expected to be resolved by the frontier highway. Therefore, India puts the required effort in the right direction to ease these tensions in the region.

Jajati K Pattnaik is an Associate Professor at the Centre for West Asian Studies, School of International Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. Chandan K Panda is an Assistant Professor at Rajiv Gandhi University (A Central University), Itanagar. The views expressed in the above piece are personal and solely those of the authors. They do not necessarily reflect Firstpost’s views.