KOLKATA — The West Bengal government has transferred control of seven highways in the strategically critical Siliguri Corridor — widely known as the “Chicken’s Neck” — to India’s central government, a move expected to accelerate road expansion in the country’s narrowest land bridge to its northeastern states.
According to a notification issued by West Bengal’s chief secretary, the previous Trinamool Congress government had stalled the handover for a year, but the new BJP state government acted immediately on taking office. It transferred the seven roads to the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) and the National Highways and Infrastructure Development Corporation Limited (NHIDCL) under the stated aim of “improving connectivity.”
The state public works department had been responsible for maintaining the roads. Five of the seven cut directly through the Siliguri Corridor. Experts said the transfer will fast-track widening and repair work on the routes.
Military analysts said road expansion in the area will make troop movements along the corridor faster and easier.
The Chicken’s Neck is geographically critical for India: the strip of land sits near three international borders and narrows to just 22 kilometers at its tightest, lying close to Nepal, Bangladesh and Bhutan.
This narrow corridor is the sole land link between India’s “Seven Sisters” — its seven northeastern states — and the rest of the country. To its north, bordering Sikkim, lies China. Security analysts said the transfer carries significant national-security implications.
Discussions about expanding roads in the area have continued at the federal level since the 2017 Doklam standoff, when Bhutanese, Chinese and Indian forces faced off at the tri-border point.
বাংলায় মূল প্রতিবেদন পড়ুন · Read the original Bengali report