New Delhi: India is concerned about the keen interest shown by the Chinese in developing the Bangladesh airbase at Lalmonirhat into a civilian airport. Lalmonirhat is located barely 20 km from India’s strategic ‘Chicken Neck’ corridor in Siliguri, West Bengal that connects the northeastern states to the rest of the country.
What is also of concern is the plan by the Chinese to engage a Pakistani contractor to build the facility at Lalmonirhat. Officials believe that the airport will likely be developed by the Chinese and Pakistanis as a surveillance station to monitor Indian military movement in Siliguri and other parts of north Bengal.
India’s vital installations in the area include the headquarters of the Indian Army’s 33 Corps or Trishakti Corps at Sukna in Siliguri and the Hasimara air base of the Indian Air Force (IAF), barely 132 km away. While the Trishakti Corps is in charge of defences in Sikkim, Hasimara is home to the second squadron of Rafale fighter aircraft.
Sources confirmed that Chinese officials recently visited the Lalmonirhat air base on an invitation from Bangladesh. India does not believe that a civilian airport at Lalmonirhat will serve any real purpose for Bangladesh.
Located in the Rangpur Division of Bangladesh, Lalmonirhat was set up by the British in 1931 and was used by Allied forces during World War II as a forward airbase for its operations on the eastern front. After Independence and Partition, the base was used by the Bangladesh Air Force. In 2019, a plot in the base was given to Bangladesh Aerospace and Aviation University to build its permanent campus.
Recently, Md Yunus, chief advisor to the interim government in Bangladesh, asked China to develop the airport there. He apparently brought up the matter during his China visit last month, when he made the controversial remarks about Bangladesh being the only guardian of the ocean for the entire region, including the seven northeastern states of India.
Work on the airport is expected to start around October this year, sources have confirmed. It now remains to be seen whether it turns out to be a civilian airport or a base for Chinese and Pakistani military assets. Much to India’s indignation, Bangladesh operates Turkish-built Bayraktar TB2 drones for surveillance along the border with India.
“For the moment, we can just wait and watch. This combination of China and Pakistan in the development of the airport is certainly a matter of concern,” an official said.
