Bangkok, the capital of Thailand, is one of the most popular destinations for Indian tourists. Until now, the only way tourists could reach here was by air. But soon you can go to Bangkok via bus and bike.
The much-awaited trilateral highway connecting India-Myanmar and Thailand will be ready in the next four years. Union Minister Nitin Gadkari has said that about 70 per cent of construction work on the ambitious India-Myanmar-Thailand Trilateral Highway has been completed.
The 2,800-km-long highway is a BIMSTEC project for multi-sectoral technical and economic cooperation to promote business, trade, health, education and tourism ties among member states.
The highway will start in Bangkok and pass through Thai cities such as Sukho Thai and Mae Sot before entering Myanmar and passing through cities such as Yangon and Mandalay. It will join India and reach Kolkata via Moreh, Kohima, Guwahati, Shrirampur and Siliguri.
Recently a two-day BIMSTEC conference was held in Kolkata. Officials attending the same conference informed that most of the work on the Indian and Thailand parts of the highway had been completed. At the same time, construction in Myanmar has been stalled due to unusual circumstances.
Thailand’s section of the highway from Bangkok to Mae Sot, located on the Thailand-Myanmar border, is almost complete, said Wijawat Israbhakdi, Thailand’s deputy minister of foreign affairs. This 501-kilometre stretch is almost ready.
Atal Ji’s Dream Project
The India-Myanmar-Thailand Trilateral Highway Project is a part of India’s most ambitious ‘Look East Policy’. The Trilateral Highway Project was first introduced in April 2002 by the Atal Bihari Vajpayee government. According to the proposal, this highway could eventually be extended through Cambodia to Vietnam and Laos.
