Guwahati, April 5 NNN: A historic World War II road that fell into disuse after 1945 is expected to get a ‘fresh lease of life’ after the landslide victory of Aung San Suu Kyi’s party in a by-poll raised hopes of democracy ending five decades of military rule in Myanmar.
American General Joseph Warren Stilwell had supervised the construction of the 1,736 km Ledo Road from the coal-rich Ledo area in eastern Assam to Kunming in China’s Yunnan province through Myanmar. Chinese military chief Chiang Kai-Shek renamed it Stilwell Road in appreciation of the Genera’s endeavour to build the road to ensure Allied supplies to China after the Japanese army had cut an arterial route in 1942.
The WW2 road runs 61 km in India up to Pangsau Pass in Arunachal Pradesh, 1,033 km in Myanmar and 632 km in China. Burmese rebels and drug cartels control much of the Myanmar segment of the road.
“Stilwell Road blends history with the future of Northeast India’s journey towards economic growth. We hope the political development in Myanmar will go a long way in improving the road and cooperation between the two countries,” said Assam industries minister Pradyut Bordoloi. Ledo falls in his assembly constituency Margherita.
DoNER minister Pawan Singh Ghatowar, however, played down Stilwell Road since ‘New Delhi is pursuing various other road projects in Myanmar as per Yangon’s priority’. While terming Suu Kyi’s victory as Myanmar’s internal matter, he said: “Political developments in our neighbouring country will not impact the level of cooperation between India and Myanmar. We have improved the Indo-Burma Friendship Road (160 km from Tamu on Manipur border to Kalemyo in Myanmar) besides focusing on the Sittwe Port project,” he said.
Estimated at Rs 550 crore in 2008, Sittwe project is part of the Kaladan Multi-Modal Transit Transport Facility envisaging connectivity between Indian ports on the eastern seaboard at Sittwe in Myanmar and then through river transport and road to Mizoram. The Kaladan river is navigable up to a point near the Mizoram-Myanmar border.
“Kaladan-Sittwe is crucial for Mizoram and Northeast India’s economic uplift, and we hope the political tidings in Myanmar will fast-track the project besides facilitating more people-to-people interactions and better border trade,” Mizoram chief minister Lal Thanhawla said from Aizawl.
Read more / Original news source: http://manipur-mail.com/world-war-two-road-might-bask-in-suu-kyi-victory/
