Aizawl:
Union Minister of State for External Affairs RK Ranjan Singh on Thursday said the ambitious Kaladan Multi Modal Transit Transport Project (KMMTTP) was delayed due to political uncertainty in Myanmar.
He said that the Centre gives priority to the bilateral cross-border project and also waterways project with Bangladesh under the Act East policy.
“Because of the unpredictable atmosphere occurring in Myanmar, our progress in view of the Kaladan project is a bit derailing,” Singh told a news conference here.
He said that the Kaladan project was strategically planned by the Centre to connect the northeastern part of the country with Indo-Pacific countries.
“The Kaladan project is intentionally and strategically planned by the Centre with full cooperation of Mizoram government. The project, if it comes true, will help us to be exposed to the Indian ocean and also link us with all Indo-pacific countries,” Singh, who is also from the Northeast (Manipur), said.
Even though the Kaladan project was derailing, the Centre has an alternative and is looking for waterways towards Bangladesh, according to the Union Minister.
Singh on Thursday attended the G20 business meeting held in Aizawl.
Addressing the meeting held at Mizoram University (MZU), Singh said that the Northeastern region has a good number of youth population, who are agile in skilling and have good experience in communicating English fluently with clients.
“This must be leveraged by our business community in employing these skilled individuals across sectors. The NE region has the diverse potential to propel “Atmanirbhar Bharat” by being the engines of growth,” he said.