Government and Asean in talks to take IMT highway up to Vietnam
The government is in talks with Asean countries to extend the India-Myanmar-Thailand (IMT) highway up to Vietnam, according to a senior official.
India and Asean countries are holding consultations on the extension of the 1,360 km IMT highway -- from Moreh in India to Mae-Sot in Thailand -- to Laos, Cambodia and to Vietnam, she said.
According to Dakshita Das, Joint Secretary, Ministry of Road Transport and Highways, already some level of discussions have started and they have also announced certain line of credit for the purpose on certain projects. She was speaking at the Asian-India Connectivity Summit, organized by industry body CII.
She further said once they connect, they have a tremendous potential in terms of incremental GDP. Connectivity can generate annually, an estimated USD 70 billion in incremental GDP and 20 million in incremental aggregate employment by 2025.
The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asian), has 10-member nations -- Indonesia, Malaysia, The Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Brunei Darussalam, Vietnam, Lao PDR, Myanmar and Cambodia.
Das said that another area on which the government is working to connect India with South East Asia is the IMT Motor Vehicle Agreement (IMT MVA).
India, Myanmar and Thailand in 2014 commenced negotiations for finalizing and implementing the IMT Motor Vehicle Agreement (IMT MVA).
She further said, framework MVAs need to be urgently concluded to utilize the physical road infrastructure on IMT Trilateral Highway and Asian that are central to completing the vision of India-Asian connectivity.
Yudhvir Singh Malik, Secretary at the ministry, said that the Northeast is the "door to building connectivity along with the Asean countries. He is looking forward to a day when he can drive his car to Kuala Lumpur and Bangkok.
Connecting India with the South-eastern countries through a network of road will create jobs, market for crops grown in hilly regions of the Northeast which will also help growers in getting better price for their produce, he said.
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01-2026
