Bangladesh Plans To Revive Lalmonirhat Airbase With Chinese, Pakistani Help

Lalmonirhat Airbase: Bangladesh Plans To Revive Lalmonirhat Airbase With Chinese, Pakistani Help Bangaldesh’s reported plans to revive an airbase in Lalmonirhat in Rangpur Division barely 20 from the Indian border could be a security concern for India. While sources say the project will be undertaken with Chinese help and was discussed during Md Yunus’s recent visit to China, talks of a Pakistani sub-contractor being involved in the project is also something that adds to the security concerns for India. With the Teesta Water Management Plan in the region also taking shape as Bangladesh and China reach chalk out specific areas of cooperation the talks of reopening the air base could affect India’s security plans for the Chicken’s neck or Siliguri Corridor which is situated close by. Pakistan’s foreign minister Ishaq Dar is scheduled visit Bangladesh from April 24 and the Pakistani foreign secretary Amna Baloch is scheduled to be in Bangladesh from April 17 after a gap of 13 years for a high-level Pakistan-Bangladesh Consultation meeting in Dhaka. The airport in Lalmonirhat was built in 1931 and it is currently with the Bangladesh Air Force but there are no scheduled flights. It was used as a forward base for Burma operations during the Second World War. No official comment has been made on this issue.