As
part of its “Southern Silk Route” China plans to establish a high speed railway
link between Kunming and Kolkata through Dhaka and Chittagong, according to
reports reaching Dhaka from Kunming, the capital city of China’s southern
Yunnan province.
The
proposal, which found a mention at recently held Greater Mekong Subregion (GMS)
meeting in Kunming, plans to boost the Bangladesh-China-India-Myanmar (BCIM)
multi-modal transport system.
“The
high speed corridor would give a fillip to the economies of all the countries
of the region,” said Li Ji Ming, vice- secretary of Yunnan provincial
government. The project looks forward to the newly established Asian
Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) and other funders for financing it.
Ming
was talking to journalists following a successful expo fair in Kunming, which
was attended by a large number of South Asian firms.
The
2800 kilometer rail route could be a critical component for the BCIM that seeks
cross border movement of goods and people in the four countries.
China
has pledged US $40 billion for the Silk Route and $50 billion for the AIIB. The
BCIM area has a trade potential of $132 billion.
Yunnan
enjoys geographical proximity with GMS and BCIM regions and is only 1000
kilometers away from Chittagong compared to 1700 kilometers to the nearest
Chinese port.
It
is the epicenter of the China-South, South-East Asia economic corridors.
(Source: BSS)
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