India-Myanmar-Thailand 3,200km trilateral highway to be completed in 2016

Editor | August 14, 2012

NEW DELHI : India, one of Aseans six partner countries, has granted a US$500-million loan to Myanmar, part of
which will be used to finance construction of a 3,200-km trilateral highway linking India, Myanmar and Thailand,
Indian ambassador to Bangkok, Anil Wadhwa said.
The route, which is expected to be completed in 2016, will run from Indias northeastern states into Myanmar,
where over 1,600km of roads will be built or improved. Construction work has started as we also aim to improve
the existing roads and bridges. This project should be completed by 2016, he said.

This will connect India with Myanmar all the way down to Mandalay. After that, we will connect with a place
where the Thai authorities are building a highway, which is 63km from the Thai border into Myanmar, the
ambassador said this in an interview with Thailands newspaper, The Nation.
The trilateral highway project will allow freight and container trucks to move across the borders from India to
Myanmar and Thailand via Chiang Rai and border towns. It will play a crucial role in boosting trade and
investment flows in the three countries, creating jobs and other benefits, he said.

We expect this to benefit Indias northeastern region as well, as four of our states are on the border with
Myanmar, especially if there is connectivity to ports like the planned Dawei deep-sea port and industrial estate in
Myanmar, Wadhwa said.
Other sources of funds for the project include the Asian Development Bank and the World Bank. The trilateral
highway will form the so-called East-West economic corridor linking India with Myanmar, Thailand, Laos,
Cambodia and Vietnam.
In addition, there is also a North-South corridor linking southern China with the rest of mainland Southeast Asia
from Myanmar and Thailand all the way down to Malaysia and Singapore. BERNAMA