Following reports of China eyeing to gain access to Bangladesh’s World War II-era Lalmonirhat airfield, India has now taken a countermeasure and is actively accelerating the efforts to revive its defunct 1971 war base, Kailashahar Airport, in Tripura, reported Moneycontrol. The Kailashahar Airport is located a few kilometres from the Bangladesh border and also close to India’s Siliguri Corridor, also known as India’s Chicken Neck.
Senior officials from the Airports Authority of India (AAI) visited the Kailashahar Airport on May 26 to take stock of the infrastructure and availability of land, reported news agency PTI. The airport, located in Tripura’s Unakoti district, has been non-operational for more than 30 years.
According to reports, AAI Northeast Regional Executive Director M Raju Krishore, accompanied by MBB Airport (Agartala) Director K C Meena, visited the airport on Monday. “Following the state government’s request and the Civil Aviation Ministry’s instruction, AAI Northeast Regional Executive Director visited Kailashahar Airport on Monday to see the infrastructure, land availability and visibility condition,” Meena told PTI.
AAI Officials Visits Kailashahar Airport:
About Kailashahar Airport:
During the 1971 Indo-Pak war, Kailashahar Airport played a pivotal role. It was a strategic base for the Indian Air Force (IAF). The airport served as the launchpad for the inaugural missions of ‘Kilo Flight’, the first air unit of the Bangladeshi resistance. It operated modified civilian aircraft for combat and reconnaissance missions.
Also Read: Chittagong And Rangpur Corridors – Know All About Two Chicken Necks Of Bangladesh
The airport was shut down in the mid-1990s due to lack of space. In December 2021, a team of six AAI officials conducted a survey to restart the airport soon, with an aim to facilitate operations under the UDAN regional connectivity scheme (RCS). In August 2023, a delegation led by Tripura’s Transport Minister Sushanta Chowdhury visited Kailashahar Airport and proposed to revive it.
India’s Countermeasure for Lalmonirhat Airfield Revival:
The development is seen as a countermove to Bangladesh’s plan to give access of the Lalmonirhat Airfield to China. However, there is no official confirmation in this regard.
About the Lalmonirhat Airfield:
During World War II, the airfield was used by Allied forces (the United States, the Soviet Union, and the United Kingdom), but it fell into disuse post-independence in 1947. It was used briefly by Pakistan in 1958.
In 2019, during Sheikh Hasina’s tenure, a plot in the Lalmonirhat Air Base was given to the Bangladesh Aerospace and Aviation University. It is now operational under the Bangladesh Air Force.
How China’s Presence at Lalmonirhat Air Base Can Be a Threat to India:
Lalmonirhat is about 100 km from the Siliguri Corridor and just over 20 km from India’s border. Any air base in this region could potentially threaten the vital link between India’s northeast and the rest of the country.
If Beijing manages to gain access to the currently inactive airfield, it can easily monitor India’s military movement through the Siliguri Corridor, India’s most vulnerable point.
As per reports, the airport is likely to start operations in October this year, and China will also rope in a Pakistani company as the subcontractor for the work. After Hasina’s ouster, a Pakistani military-intelligence delegation also reportedly inspected Bangladesh’s border areas.
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