THE STATES

A pass to prosperity

SUHRID SANKAR CHATTOPADHYAY
in Gangtok and Nathula

West Bengal and Sikkim prepare to make the most of the reopening of the Nathula Pass for trade with China.

WITH the imminent opening of the Nathula Pass, West Bengal and Sikkim have joined hands to work out a strategy wherein both States will benefit from the trade and commerce along that route. On November 14, West Bengal's Industry and Commerce Minister Nirupam Sen and Municipal Affairs and Urban Development Minister Ashok Bhattacharya visited Nathula and also held talks with Sikkim Chief Minister Pawan Kumar Chamling.

PARTH SANYAL

An Indian soldier at the Nathula Pass on the India-China border.

"Once this trade route is opened, there will be immense possibilities of trade and commerce. Currently India's total trade with China is only $5 billion. This will increase considerably," Nirupam Sen told Frontline. One of the main points of discussion by representatives of the governments of Sikkim and West Bengal is infrastructure development to facilitate the trade process. It takes a steep climb to reach Nathula, at 15,000 feet (4,500 meters) from sea level, situated 54 km from Gangtok, the capital of Sikkim." Our main emphasis initially will be on improving infrastructure. The road link has to be strengthened. We are considering various options for improving the roads and are also looking at possibilities of new alternative routes to Nathula," Sen said.

"We are together in this and shall be consulting each other on what needs to be done as the reopening of the trade route will immensely benefit both our economies," Chamling said. The Sikkim government is also planning to set up a warehouse at Changu, lying west of Nathula, which will be the terminating point for Chinese traders. Further checkposts and manpower will also be required, for security reasons.

Describing his and Ashok Bhattacharya's meeting with Chamling as very productive, Sen said the next round of talks would be at the Secretary level. Addressing a press conference in Gangtok, Sen said: "Sikkim and West Bengal will be working jointly towards infrastructure development, but the Centre also has to come forward with assistance. For this a joint proposal by the two governments will be made." Jalpaiguri and Siliguri will be the main hubs once the Nathula Pass is reopened, and for that the West Bengal government is working towards further developing the infrastructure there. The Siliguri-Jalpaiguri Development Authority has been asked to look into areas that need improvement, and a consultant will be appointed to examine the existing infrastructure and propose what would be required additionally. But for immediate purposes, what needs to be developed are customs, warehousing and storage and freight handling infrastructure.

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Indian tourists with a Chinese soldier at the Nathula Pass in the last week of November.

West Bengal, especially Siliguri and Jalpaiguri, are strategically located to benefit Chinese traders. This traditional Silk Route is the shortest between the two countries. The Tibetan town of Yatung is just 52 km away from Nathula, and Lhasa only 525 km away." The Kolkata port as well as the Haldia port will be very accessible for China; we are also planning to open a third port at Kulpi," Sen said. With such easy access to the Bay of Bengal, China can only hope to benefit from sea trade with other South Asian countries. The governments of West Bengal and Sikkim are also contemplating the setting up of a dry port at either Siliguri or Jalpaiguri. As the existing maritime trade route from China to eastern India is more circuitous and lengthy than the traditional Silk Route, both parties will be saving immensely in transport costs.

"The Centre has made a list of commodities that can be traded with China. We have asked for a copy of that so that we can identify what are the goods readily available in West Bengal and Sikkim," Sen said. According to a `discussion paper' brought out by the Confederation of Indian Industries (CII) on the proposed reopening of Nathula, the top five commodities of export from India to China in 2001-2002, included iron ore; plastics and linoleum products; minerals and ores; marine products; drugs, pharmaceuticals and chemicals. China's top five exports to India in 2001-2002 included electronic goods; coal, coke and briquettes; organic chemicals; raw silk; and medicinal and pharmaceuticals products. According to statistics available with the CII, the $5-billion trade between India and China in 2002 was less than 1 per cent of China's total trade volume. "With India's total trade volume crossing $100 billion, clearly trade between India and China is bound to grow," stated the discussion paper. It also sees a substantial growth in bilateral trade between India and China, amounting to almost $10 billion, within three years of the opening up of the Nathula Pass.

"The reopening of the Nathula Pass will also be a boon to the tourism sector. To reach Manasarovar by car through Nathula will take just two days, whereas now it takes at least 15 days. Lakhs of tourists from both sides will be benefited," Ashok Bhattacharya said. According to the CII report, "West Bengal could register impressive growth in tourist inflows, leading to a growth in spending on the travel and hospitality sector. Siliguri could well emerge as the growth centre of Buddhist tourism in India. The city should position itself as the hub for Buddhist pilgrims from Japan, and for East-Asian travellers to Bodhgaya in Bihar, Rumtek in Sikkim and Tawang in Arunachal Pradesh. "It is not just financial benefits that can be derived with the opening up of the pass. It will also allow two very ancient civilisations to get close to each other. Culturally, this will be very enriching too," said Sen.

Before the Nathula route was closed in 1962 with the outbreak of the Sino-Indian war, Khyaliram Singhi, now 85 years old, was a regular user of the road from 1955 to 1962 for his trading business. From the Sikkim side he would generally transport cigarettes, kerosene and blue and khaki clothes for his shop in Yatung. "The journey was very tough, as it was hard terrain, and for personal transport and carrying goods I could use only mules," Singhi told Frontline. From Gangtok, he would first travel to the 15 Mile Checkpost, where he would sometimes spend the night and proceed early next morning in the direction of Yatung. To make the full journey, it would take him around two full days.

"Even in winter, when there would be snow all around, I would be using the route. I even used to wash myself in the icy waters of mountain streams, and I was never afraid," Singhi said. Singhi is fluent in six languages - Lepcha, Bhutia, Tibetan, Nepali, Hindi and English. During his trading days, he even taught himself to speak Chinese. He was also the secretary of the traders' association there, which had a strength of 70. "The Chinese always used to treat us with suspicion," added Singhi with a wry smile. "They thought us Indian traders to be spies." Singhi is excited about the reopening of the pass, and despite his age he is looking forward to another trip down his old trade route. "Once Nathula opens, I shall definitely be going there again," he said.

Singhi has deposited money in a bank in Yatung. "In the last 40 years, with interest, that is bound to have increased to a considerable amount," he said, failing, however, to remember exactly how much he had there.

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