More trade points on Indo-Burma border; Is it beneficial?

Mungpi
Mizzima News
October 13, 2008

New Delhi – Attempting to boost bilateral trade, India will seek the opening of two more trade centres along the porous Indo-Burma, when Jairam Ramesh, Minister of State for Commerce and Power visits Burma for two-day, (October 14 to 15), talks with junta officials in the Southeast Asian country's second largest city, Mandalay.

According to a press statement from the Indian Ministry of Commerce & Industry, Ramesh, who will lead an official delegation for trade and investment, will raise the "Indian desire" to expand border trade with Burma by opening two more trade points along the 1,600-kilometre porous border the two countries share.

With only one trade point in Moreh town in Manipur state currently operational along the border, India will propose two additional centres in "Avangkhu in Nagaland and Zowkhathar in Mizoram, which happens to be a long-standing demand of these two states," the statement said.

Ramesh, who will be visiting Burma for the third time this year, will also propose the expansion of the number of items to be traded, which currently stands at 22, in view of moving towards free trade in these centres.

India and Burma in recent years have maintained regular high-level visits to discuss bilateral relationship. Observers view Ramesh's visit, which will begin on Tuesday, as another trip to appease the military generals that have ruled the country since 1962.

"This trip is a part of the two countries [India and Burma] strategy to boost bilateral relationship," said Dr. Tint Swe, a minister of the Burmese government – National coalition Government of Union of Burma, in exile.

Ramesh will also reiterate India's offer to include Burma in the duty free tariff preference scheme, which India has announced for Least Developed Countries (LDCs), the statement said.

Following the talks in Mandalay, Ramesh and the Burmese Prime Minister Lt-Gen Thein Sein on October 16, will inaugurate a Centre for Enhancement of IT Skills set up in Rangoon with Indian assistance of $ 2 million.

The Centre will be run by Indian professionals and will train 1000 youths every year and students will be initially awarded with a diploma certificate of the Pune-based Centre for the Development of Advanced Computing (C-DAC), which is an institution under the Ministry of Information Technology.

Look-East Policy

Dr. Tint Swe, who is based in New Delhi and who has been vociferous in his criticism of India's 'Look East' policy, said the proposal for the two trade points are in line with India's look east policy, which according to him has failed.

"India, while it wants to appease the Burmese junta, also seeks to tell the people of the Northeast that it is implementing development projects for them," Dr. Tint Swe said.

He said, for more than a decade, the look east policy has not brought any sustainable development to the people of Northeast India as well as the Burmese people on the other side of the border.

"India is miscalculating and should realise that the look east policy is failing after more than a decade of experience," he added.

Under the look east policy of India, first introduced in the early 1990s, India began to cosy up to Burma's military rulers by building roads, opening border trade, providing financial loans, giving technological assistance and even by supplying military hardware.

According to analysts, India has been vigorously pushing for a warmer bilateral relationship to counter the growing Chinese influence on Burma, and to tame its growing insurgency in its Northeastern states, who use Burmese soil as a safe haven to fight the central government.

But Dr. Tint Swe said despite India's efforts, Burma's military rulers are playing their own game and are using India to show the world that it has the support of the largest democracy.

"India cannot achieve the objectives that it hopes through its look east policy," Dr. Tint Swe said.

Northeast connection

Meanwhile, a student body in India's north eastern states said the Indian government's plan to propose two more trade points along the border with Burma will provide no significant benefits to the people of the region but will be applauded by a few businessmen.

Muanpuia, Vice Chairman of the North East Students Organisation (NESO), an apex student body of northeast India, said, "The look east policy of India overlooks the interest of the people of the Northeast."

"The benefits of the two trade points will directly go to the military junta of Burma and to the Indian government," said Muanpuia, adding that the Centre is just trying to appease the people of northeastern states by opening the trade centres while it seeks to gain the support of the Burmese generals.

"India first of all should not deal with the Burmese military junta, and it should stop claiming that it is helping the northeastern states to develop," Muanpuia added.

Instead, he said, India should review the 'Look East' policy as it does not bring any benefits to the people of the Northeast while the junta in Burma is claiming that it is being supported by the world's largest democracy to continue its rule.

NSN Lotha, advisor of the NESO, said the trade centres, if opened, will not provide substantial benefits to the people of Northeast but will be a vantage point for India to bargain with the Burmese military government for closer cooperation.

India in the past two decades has tried in several ways to appease the Burmese military government. According to the Ministry of Commerce & Industry, India's exports to Burma for the fiscal year 2007-08 accounted for about $ 185 million, while its imports from Burma is valued at around $ 810 million, comprising mostly of pulses. Burma thus enjoys a substantial trade surplus with India.

However, despite targeting a US $ 1 billion trade in 2006-07, it fell short with a trade volume of only at US $ 650 million. However, Indo-Burmese bilateral trade has been increasing with the trade amount reaching US $ 557.68 million in 2005-06, which is 25 per cent up from the previous year, 2004-05, when it stood at US $ 341.40 million.