BIMSTEC nations to adopt plan for regional transport connectivity

India and six other BIMSTEC nations will on Wednesday adopt a master plan for regional transport connectivity, setting the stage for a regional motor vehicles agreement as well as a pact for ferry services in the Bay of Bengal.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will virtually take part in the BIMSTEC summit, which will be hosted by Sri Lankan President Gotabaya Rajapaksa. The summit will see the BIMSTEC leaders formally adopting a charter of the 25-year-old bloc.

The BIMSTEC (Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation) is a bloc comprising seven littoral and landlocked countries dependent on Bay of Bengal – India, Bhutan, Bangladesh, Thailand, Myanmar, Nepal and Sri Lanka.

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Though the BIMSTEC came into existence in 1997, the cooperation among the members did not gain momentum till New Delhi a few years back started breathing fresh life into it as the SAARC (South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation) hit an impasse due to hostility between India and Pakistan.

As Pakistan continued to play spoilsport by blocking several connectivities and regional cooperation projects proposed by India within the SAARC framework, New Delhi turned its focus on the BIMSTEC to pursue such initiatives.

The BIMSTEC Master Plan for Transport Connectivity provides a framework, which can help the seven-member nations better align respective national transportation and connectivity networks, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said in Colombo as he and his counterparts from other member nations had a meeting ahead of the summit. “It must be fully backed by energetic business collaboration.”

“We must also accelerate efforts on ongoing initiatives such as the establishment of a coastal shipping ecosystem, of port facilities, of ferry services in the Bay of Bengal, as also power grid interconnectivity and a regional motor vehicles agreement,” Jaishankar said, making a statement on behalf of the Government of India in the meeting.

The BIMSTEC Motor Vehicle Agreement will pave the way for hassle-free movement of cargo and passenger vehicles across borders in the BIMSTEC region that comprises seven nations, including five of the eight SAARC (South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation) members. The Coastal Shipping Agreement will apply to shipping within 20 nautical miles off the coastlines of the BIMSTEC nations.

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