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{{Short description|Corridor connecting Northeast India to the rest of India}}
{{other uses of|Chicken's Neck}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=July 2017}}
{{Use Indian English|date=July 2017}}
{{Multiple issues|
{{update|date=December 2019}}
{{more citations needed|date=January 2021}}
}}
[[File:chickensneckindia.jpg|thumb|right|250px|The Siliguri Corridor is the strip of Indian territory within the red highlighted circle.]]
The '''Siliguri Corridor''', also known as the '''Chicken's Neck''', is a stretch of land around the city of [[Siliguri]] in [[West Bengal]], [[India]].<ref name=":0">{{Cite web|last=Singh|first=Mayank|date=7 November 2021|title=Army steps up efforts to safeguard Siliguri Corridor|url=https://www.newindianexpress.com/thesundaystandard/2021/nov/07/army-steps-up-efforts-to-safeguard-siliguri-corridor-2380383.html|url-status=live|access-date=2022-01-16|website=The New Indian Express}}</ref><ref name=":1">{{Cite web|last=Singh|first=Mohinder Pal|date=9 October 2019|title=What if China wrings India's 'Chicken's Neck' – the Siliguri corridor? Here are some countermeasures|url=https://usiofindia.org/publication/news/what-if-china-wrings-indias-chickens-neck-the-siliguri-corridor-here-are-some-countermeasures/|url-status=live|access-date=2022-01-16|work=The Times of India|via=USI India}}</ref> {{convert|20-22|km}} at the narrowest section, this geo-political and geo-economical corridor connects the eight states of [[northeast India]] to the rest of the Indian Republic.<ref name=":0"/> The countries of [[Nepal]] and [[Bangladesh]] lie on each side of the corridor and the [[Kingdom of Bhutan]] lies at the northern end of the corridor. The [[Kingdom of Sikkim]] formerly lay on the northern side of the corridor, until its merging with India in 1975.

The city of Siliguri, in the state of West Bengal, is the major city in this area and the central transfer point in [[eastern South Asia]] that connects Bhutan, Nepal, Bangladesh, Sikkim, [[Darjeeling district|Darjeeling]], and Northeast India to one another.

==History==
The [[partition of India]] led to the formation of the Siliguri Corridor through the creation of [[East Pakistan]] (now [[Bangladesh]]) after the [[Partition of Bengal (1947)|partition of Bengal]] (into [[East Bengal]] and West Bengal) in 1947–1948.{{sfnp|Atig Ghosh, The Importance of Being Siliguri|2018|p=136}}

The [[Kingdom of Sikkim]] formerly lay on the northern side of the corridor, until its union with the Indian Republic in 1975 via a publicly held referendum.<ref>{{Cite news |title=Sikkim Votes On Indian Merger |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1873&dat=19750415&id=B0YfAAAAIBAJ&pg=2633,5501632 |newspaper=Daytona Beach Morning Journal |date=15 April 1975 |access-date=28 January 2018}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |title=Sikkim Voters OK Merger With India |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1755&dat=19750416&id=vDogAAAAIBAJ&pg=7319,25549 |newspaper=Sarasota Herald-Tribune |date=16 April 1975|access-date=28 January 2018}}</ref> This gave India a buffer to the north of the Siliguri Corridor and consolidated India's control over the western side of the [[Chumbi Valley]].

==Location and dimensions==
[[File:Siliguri corridor variations in measurement.jpg|thumb|242x242px|Dimensions of the corridor. Distances in kilometers.|left]]The dimensions of the corridor are a matter of interpretation.<ref name=":2">{{Cite web|last=Singh|first=Lt Gen (Retd) KJ|author-link=Kamal Jit Singh|date=9 July 2017|title=India ready, theoretically: 'Threats' to Siliguri Corridor war-gamed|url=https://www.tribuneindia.com/news/archive/features/india-ready-theoretically-threats-to-siliguri-corridor-war-gamed-433789|url-status=live|access-date=2022-01-21|website=Tribune India}}</ref> Descriptions give it an area of {{convert|170 by 60|km|abbr=on}} with the narrowest section being {{convert|20-22|km|abbr=on}}.<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":1" /> [[Kamal Jit Singh]] places the length at {{convert|200|km|abbr=on}} with a width of {{convert|17 to 60|km|abbr=on}}, giving it an area of approximately {{convert|12200|km2|sqmi|abbr=on}}.<ref name=":2" />
Another description places its dimensions as approximately {{convert|200|km|abbr=on}} in length and {{convert|20 to 60|km|abbr=on}} wide, also giving it an area of approximately {{convert|12200|km2|sqmi|abbr=on}}.<ref name=":3">{{Cite web|last=Bhattacharya|first=Pinaki|date=2001|title=The Shiliguri Corridor: Question Mark on Security|url=https://www.satp.org/satporgtp/publication/faultlines/volume10/article7.htm|url-status=live|access-date=2022-01-21|publisher=South Asia Terrorism Portal}}</ref>

The corridor is located between Bangladesh to the south-west, Nepal on the northwest, and proximate to Bhutan in the north.<ref>Marcus Franda, "Bangladesh, The First Decades", South Asian Publishers Pvt. Ltd, New Delhi, 1982, p-126</ref> Between [[Sikkim]] and Bhutan lies the [[Chumbi Valley]], a dagger-like slice of [[Tibet]]an territory.<ref name=":4">Partha S. Ghosh, "Cooperation and Conflict in South Asia", UPL, Dhaka, 1989, p-43</ref> The southern end of the Dolam plateau or Doklam triboundary area slopes into the corridor.<ref>{{Cite news|last1=Myers|first1=Steven Lee|last2=Barry|first2=Ellen|last3=Fisher|first3=Max|date=2017-07-26|title=How India and China Have Come to the Brink Over a Remote Mountain Pass|language=en-US|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/07/26/world/asia/dolam-plateau-china-india-bhutan.html|access-date=2022-01-22|issn=0362-4331}}</ref> At the narrowest stretch, the corridor is generally formed by the [[Mechi River]] in the east; Nepal's [[Bhadrapur Municipality|Bhadrapur]] lies on the banks of the river.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Dixit|first=Kanak Mani|date=2002-08-01|title=Chicken's Neck|url=https://www.himalmag.com/chickens-neck/|url-status=live|access-date=2022-01-22|website=[[Himal Southasian]]}}</ref> Further north the [[Mechi Bridge]] connects [[Mechinagar Municipality|Mechinagar]].<ref>{{Cite news|last=|first=|date=2017-08-23|title=Approval of MoU between India & Nepal for laying down implementation arrangement for construction of new Bridge over Mechi River at Indo-Nepal border|work=Business Standard India|url=https://www.business-standard.com/article/news-cm/approval-of-mou-between-india-nepal-for-laying-down-implementation-arrangement-for-construction-of-new-bridge-over-mechi-river-at-indo-nepal-border-117082300967_1.html|access-date=2022-01-22}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|last=Khanal|first=Radha|date=26 November 2020|title=Asian Highway now connected with Nepal|url=https://theannapurnaexpress.com/news/asian-highway-now-connected-with-nepal-2888|url-status=live|access-date=2022-01-22|website=The Annapurna Express|language=en}}</ref>

==Current situation==
{{update section|date=August 2017}}

===Connectivity and logistics===
[[File:Siliguri Corridor sketch with Asian Highway segment.jpg|thumb|245x245px|[[AH2]] of the [[Asian Highway Network|Asian Highway]] goes through the Siliguri Corridor.]]
India has embarked on a slew of projects, such as construction of [[India-China Border Roads]] and Advance Landing Ground (ALGs), [[Ministry of Development of North Eastern Region#Northeast India connectivity projects|Northeastern India connectivity]] and [[India–Myanmar barrier#Look-East Connectivity|Look-East transnational connectivity]] projects including [[Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation|BIMSTEC]] and [[BBIN]] to create multiple alternatives to Silliguri corridor, including through Bangladesh and the sea.

All land transportation between the rest of India and its far northeastern states uses this corridor. The route has a major [[broad gauge]] railway line. Electrification of this double-track corridor is in progress with assistance from [[Central Organization for Railway Electrification]] (CORE). Additionally, the old [[metre gauge]] line (recently converted to a {{convert|1.676|m}} broad-gauge line) connects [[Siliguri Junction railway station|Siliguri Junction]] with Islampur in [[North Dinajpur district]] of West Bengal, via [[Bagdogra]] (the only airport of national interest in the corridor) and the bordering towns of Adhikari, [[Galgalia]], [[Thakurganj]], [[Naxalbari]] and Taiabpur with Nepal. [[National Highway 31 (India)|National Highway 10]] connects Siliguri to [[Guwahati]] in [[Assam]].<ref>{{cite magazine|last=Gokhale|first=Nitin A.|date=13 July 1998|title=Chicken's Neck, All choked up|url=http://www.outlookindia.com/article.aspx?205844|url-status=dead|magazine=Outlook|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200428064620/https://www.outlookindia.com/magazine/story/chickens-neck-all-choked-up/205844|archive-date=28 April 2020|access-date=27 February 2011}}</ref>

There is no free-trade agreement between Bangladesh and India. The [[Tetulia Corridor]], an alternative to the Siliguri Corridor, is proposed under Article VIII of the India–Bangladesh Trade Agreement 1980, which states that "The two governments agree to make mutually beneficial arrangements for the use of their waterways, railways and roadways for commerce between the two countries and for passage of goods between two places in one country through the territory of the other".{{Citation needed|date=December 2017}} However, the proposal is still in the initial stages of negotiation.

===Security===
India has a number of forces stationed on the borders, the Army and [[Indo-Tibetan Border Police]] man the border with China; [[Sashastra Seema Bal]] are deployed along the border with Nepal and Bhutan and [[Border Security Force]] for Bangladesh.<ref name=":2" /> The strip is also patrolled by the [[Indian Army]], the [[Assam Rifles]], and state police forces including the [[West Bengal Police]].<ref name=":2" /> The security threat posed by the corridor decreased following the creation of Bangladesh in 1971.<ref name=":5">{{Cite news|last=Joshi|first=Manoj|author-link=Manoj Joshi (journalist)|date=10 July 2017|title=Chink In The Checker's Board|work=ORF/ Outlook|url=https://www.orfonline.org/research/doklam-chink-checker-board/#:~:text=The%20Chinese%20action%20in%20the,of%20aggression%2C%20presenting%20fait%20accompli.&text=The%20location%20is%20near%20the,proximate%20to%20Bhutan%20and%20China.|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181003131536/https://www.outlookindia.com/magazine/story/chink-in-the-checkers-board/299090|archive-date=3 October 2018}}</ref> Internal threats to the corridor are numerous.<ref name=":5"/> Militant groups known to have used the corridor include [[United Liberation Front of Asom]] (ULFA) and [[National Socialist Council of Nagaland]] (NSCN).<ref name=":3" />

The threat of a Chinese advance is still considered by Indian planners.<ref name=":5"/> A Chinese military advance of less than {{convert|130|km|abbr=on}} would cut off Bhutan, part of [[West Bengal]] and all of [[North-East India]], an area containing almost 50 million people. This situation arose during the [[Sino-Indian War|war between India and China]] in 1962.<ref name=":4" /> The security threat to this corridor was heightened during the [[2017 China–India border standoff|2017 Doklam incident]].<ref>{{Cite web|last=Singh|first=D. K.|date=2018-08-11|title=This is the first official account of the India-China face-off in Doklam|url=https://theprint.in/defence/this-is-the-first-official-account-of-the-india-china-face-off-in-doklam/97014/|url-status=live|access-date=2022-01-21|website=ThePrint}}</ref> The probability of China cutting off seven states in northeast India has been questioned.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Asthana|first=Alok|date=1 August 2017|title=Does It Make Military Sense for India to Mount the Barricades at Doklam?|url=https://thewire.in/diplomacy/india-china-war-consequences-doklam|url-status=live|access-date=2022-01-22|website=The Wire}}</ref>

==In popular culture==
[[Humphrey Hawksley]], in his 2000 novel ''[[Dragon Fire (novel)|Dragon Fire]],'' briefly authors a situation where China cuts off India's land route to its northeastern territories.<ref name=":3"/> ''Assassin's Mace'' (2011) by Brigadier Bob Butalia also involves such a situation involving [[Doklam]] and [[Jaldhaka River]].<ref name=":2" />

==Notes==
{{Reflist}}

;Bibliography
* {{Cite book|last=Ghosh|first=Atig|title=The Importance of Being Siliguri. Border-Effect and the 'Untimely' City in North Bengal|work=Logistical Asia: The Labour of Making a World Region|publisher=Palgrave Macmillan, Springer|year=2018|isbn=9789811083334|editor-last=Neilson|editor-first=Brett|lccn=2018935185|ref={{sfnref|Atig Ghosh, The Importance of Being Siliguri|2018}}|editor-last2=Rossiter|editor-first2=Ned|editor-last3=Samaddar|editor-first3=Ranabir}}

==Further reading==
* {{Cite web|last=Gill|first=Prabhjote|date=16 December 2020|title=After 55 years, India will inaugurate a new railway line with Bangladesh to save its 'Chicken's Neck' from China|url=https://www.businessinsider.in/defense/news/india-inaugurates-new-railway-line-with-bangladesh-to-save-its-chickens-neck-from-china-on-vijay-diwas/articleshow/79750869.cms|url-status=live|access-date=2022-01-20|website=Business Insider}}
* {{Cite news|last=Sarkar|first=Debasis|date=3 September 2020|title=Siliguri corridor continues to be preferred International antique trafficking route|work=The Economic Times|url=https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/politics-and-nation/siliguri-corridor-continues-as-preferred-international-antique-trafficking-route/articleshow/77913706.cms?from=mdr|access-date=2022-01-20}}
* {{Cite web|last=Sinha|first=Avijit|date=8 November 2016|title=Glare on vulnerability of Siliguri corridor|url=https://www.telegraphindia.com/west-bengal/glare-on-vulnerability-of-siliguri-corridor/cid/1524011|url-status=live|access-date=2022-01-20|website=Telegraph India}}
* {{Citation|title=Study for modal shift of cargo passing through Siliguri Corridor destined for North-East and neighboring countries to IWT|date=August 2017|url=http://iwai.nic.in/sites/default/files/Study%20for%20Modal%20shift%20of%20cargo%20passing%20through%20Siliguri%20Corridor%20to%20North%20East%20and%20Neighbouring%20countries%20to%20IWT.pdf|publisher=Ernst & Young (EY). Inland Waterways Authority of India}}
* {{Citation|last=Sabu|first=Jithin|title=Field Diary - Siliguri Corridor|date=November 2020|url=https://cuts-citee.org/pdf/field-diary-siliguri-corridor.pdf|publisher=CUTS International (Consumer Unity & Trust Society)}}
* {{Citation|last=Bhattacharjee|first=Rupak|title=Security Vulnerabilities of India's Siliguri Corridor and their Implications|date=2015|url=https://spsindia.in/2016/02/08/issue-02-security-vulnerabilities-of-indias-siliguri-corridor-and-their-implications/|publisher=Society for Policy Studies (SPS)}}
* {{Citation|last=Kumar|first=Brig Narender|title=Internal Security Challenges to India: 2019|date=January 2019|url=https://www.claws.in/static/IB163_Internal-Security-Challenges-to-India-2019.pdf|volume=163|issue=|publisher=CLAWS}}
* {{Cite journal|last1=Meena|first1=Rakesh Kumar|last2=Bhattacharjee|first2=Dhrubajyoti|date=2008|title=Siliguri in Gorkhaland: A Political Nightmare for West Bengal?|url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/40277581|journal=Economic and Political Weekly|volume=43|issue=25|pages=15–16|jstor=40277581|issn=0012-9976}}
* {{Cite journal|last=Scott|first=David|date=2008-09-23|title=Sino-Indian Security Predicaments for the Twenty-First Century|journal=Asian Security|volume=4|issue=3|pages=244–270|doi=10.1080/14799850802306468|s2cid=145149544|issn=1479-9855|doi-access=free}}
* {{Cite journal|last=Middleton|first=Townsend|date=2020-05-15|title=Connective Insecurities: Chokepoint Pragmatics at India's Chicken Neck|url=https://doi.org/10.1080/00141844.2019.1705369|journal=Ethnos|volume=88 |issue=2 |pages=204–225|doi=10.1080/00141844.2019.1705369|s2cid=219428673|issn=0014-1844}}
* {{Cite journal|last=Malik|first=Hasan Yaser|date=December 2015|title=Siliguri: A Geopolitical Manoeuvre Corridor in the Eastern Himalayan Region for China and India|journal=Contemporary Chinese Political Economy and Strategic Relations|volume=1|issue=3|pages=699–720}}

{{West Bengal topics}}
{{coord|26|35|N|88|15|E|source:kolossus-frwiki|display=title}}

[[Category:Geography of West Bengal]]
[[Category:Darjeeling district]]
[[Category:Siliguri]]
[[Category:Geopolitical corridors]]
[[Category:Bangladesh–India border]]
[[Category:Bhutan–India border]]
[[Category:India–Nepal border]]

Siliguri Corridor - Revision history

NereidaMccurdy5: expanded content

Ajay Kumar: Created a new article