About time Arunachal's roads got the nation's attention

The difference in fortunes of two states in the Northeast cannot be more: as I write this column, our Nagaland correspondent is on the ground to report on yet another road project gone awry in the state. This, when CM Neiphiu Rio acknowledged on the floor of the state assembly that the widening of the state’s most crucial road, the Dimapur-Kohima Highway, may never see the light of day.

And then you have Arunachal Pradesh, which has just bagged Rs 44,000 crore from the Centre for road projects. Now, my comparison between Nagaland and Arunachal, at least for now, ends here. I would be mistaken if I used roads to say that the Nagaland government is less efficient than the Arunachal government because that would be wrong and myopic on my part. I would, instead, make the case here that for a secure and safe India, and for Arunachal Pradesh to continue making strides on the development path, the central government’s allocation is both timely and well-deserved.

Timely, because Arunachal is already decades behind other states when it comes to road networks. An RBI report shows that Arunachal, which is larger than Assam in size, had only 10% of the road network. As of 2017, Assam had 3,77,777 km of the road network, and Arunachal stood at a measly 37,025 km of the road network. But here is a more damning stat from the RBI report: up to 2015, Delhi had a bigger road network than Arunachal Pradesh!

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Pema Khandu, now the second-longest serving CM of Arunachal, has claimed that he is known as the “road” Chief Minister, and rightly so. Before he jumped head-on into politics, Khandu cut his teeth building roads. In October, during the Northeast Leaders Connect in Imphal, during a conversation with fellow BJP leader Mmhonlümo Kikon, Khandu explained how during his leadership, Arunachal had constructed over 20,000 km of road. This included the completion of the road to Vijaynagar, the easternmost inhabited land of our country, and also the remotest circle (Tehsil) of Changlang district.

Rarely a day goes by when we are not reminded of Arunachal’s strategic importance. The latest allocation will include provision for the Frontier Highway, which will safeguard the Indo-China-Myanmar border and control migration from border areas while improving the tourism infrastructure in the state. China’s nefarious activities at the border are both well-known and well-documented, so it is high time India too steps up and counters these activities. And what better than all-weather roads to form the core of the defence of our border?

There is another strong reason why the Rs 44,000 crore allocation is crucial for Arunachal Pradesh. If you remember, last year, we had done a detailed story and a detailed video on why the Asian Development Bank, which finances so many projects across the country, absolutely refuses to touch Arunachal Pradesh. With zero international support, only the Central government can step in and support Arunachal’s push for development and prosperity.

But it will not be all roses and sunshine for Arunachal Pradesh. While the government is trying its best to move and take Arunachal forward, there are more than enough grim reminders that we are still a corrupt society. The recent scandal exposing the scam in the Arunachal Pradesh Public Service Commission’s (APPSC) assistant engineer (civil) examination question paper leak case is a painful reminder that no government can claim to be efficient when such issues exist. The Central government must also ensure adequate checks and mechanisms to ensure that the money for roads ends up as money for roads, not for the headline of yet another corruption scandal. Northeast India may be small, but we have contributed more than enough when it comes to corruption stories. Arunachal may be India’s easternmost state, but it is the nation’s first line of defence against a pesky neighbour who never misses a chance to create and promote animosity.

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