Too close for comfort: Bangladesh airbase near Siliguri corridor worries India

Bangladesh is reportedly building an airbase just 20 km from India’s ‘Chicken’s Neck.’ Dhaka has sought assistance from China to build the base at the site at Lalmonirhat of Rangpur division, which had once housed an airfield of the World War II era. There are reports that Chinese officials had recently visited the proposed site, triggering a caution for Indian defence forces. It comes in the backdrop of repeated references to the Northeast made by Bangladesh’s advisor Md Yunus and his aides in different contexts, some of which were antagonising.

Dhaka’s detailed plans for the airbase are not yet clear, but there are reasons for India to be cautious, given China’s involvement in the project. This base could be a significant threat to India, particularly the eastern sector, as it would enable rapid deployment of fighter jets, surveillance aircraft and drones, and may help monitor Indian military movements in the Northeast, Sikkim and West Bengal. In a conflict scenario, this base could hold the key in disrupting India’s supply lines, besides threatening territorial integrity.

Defence ties between Dhaka and Beijing had been deepening under the new regime in Bangladesh. China has been supplying vast volumes of weapons and extending cooperation in the construction of military infrastructure in Bangladesh.

In May 2024, both countries held a historic joint military exercise, the first of its kind, reiterating their close defence ties. In October 2024, the People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) sent its warships Qi Jiguang and Jing Gangshan to Chittagong Port for a goodwill visit. This symbolised the existence of defence relations intact, irrespective of the change of power in Dhaka.

The new interim government has also expressed willingness to solidify its defence and security cooperation with China further.

This growing Bangladesh-China defence cooperation has several strategic implications for India, especially in the context of regional power dynamics in South Asia. China’s deepening footprint in Bangladesh – military, economic, and infrastructural – fits Beijing’s broader strategy of encircling India through strategic partnerships.

While Bangladesh’s military build-up isn’t directly hostile to India, it alters the regional military balance and compels India to monitor its eastern frontier more closely. Chinese naval presence via Bangladesh’s ports (potential future use of Payra or Chittagong) could complicate India’s maritime security, particularly in the Bay of Bengal, a critical area for India’s ‘Act East’ policy and energy security.

While Bangladesh-China defence ties are not overtly hostile to India, they are part of a wider pattern of Chinese strategic encroachment in the region. For India, it signals the need to reinvigorate its diplomacy, enhance defence outreach, and remain vigilant about the shifting balance of power in its immediate neighborhood.