“When you pinpoint Mongla Port on the map, you realize that it’s closer to India. It’s up the river, which obviously gives for some limitations. But we also have a few ports that are up the river, like for example, Diamond Harbor and Calcutta.”
Retired naval officer Capt Sarabjeet S Parmar was on The Gist, talking about the implications of Mongla Port in Bangladesh being developed by China. The decision followed talks between Prime Minister Tarique Rahman and the top Chinese leadership last week and all that remains for now it would seem, is for the work to begin.
The irony is Mongla Port is about 50-km from Khulna where a shipyard had signed an MoU with India’s Garden Reach Shipbuilders about a decade ago to design and build vessels of various kinds. Nothing came of that.
There were even plans for a special economic zone for Indian auto companies to assemble cars, again nothing came of it. So can one blame Bangladesh if it looks for alternatives?
For India it is the Chinese hand, so close to Indian shores. What could the Chinese get up to? Would they get a free hand to do whatever they want, put up anything they want including monitoring stations to get intelligence on India?
Capt Parmar believes China will develop the port with an eye on the commercial possibilities. Mongla Port is not a deep water port, it is a classic river port which is deeper inland and in that sense, may be less attractive to international shipping. So much will depend on how the port is developed, what it offers and at what cost.
“They (Bangladesh) are looking at enhancing their exports to China, which is already the biggest trading partner in any case. So there is reason to believe that the Bangladeshi exports will get a boost from this.”
India needs to do its sums, and while concerns will always be there about China, there’s a need to examine issues rationally. Bangladesh needs to develop, it’s not keeping all its eggs in the Chinese basket and there’s room for India if we play smart.
Tune in for more in this conversation with Capt Sarabjeet Parmar of the Council for Strategic & Defence Research.
