Answer

Introduction

India’s export economy is highly concentrated, with four coastal States contributing over 70% of exports, while the North East with 5,400 km of borders accounts for only 0.13%. This neglect stems from infrastructure gaps, security-centric governance, and policy exclusion, despite the region’s agro-resources, strategic location, and ASEAN linkages.

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Reasons behind the low export potential of the North East

• Infrastructural Gaps: The region lacks operational trade corridors, warehouses, and cold-chain facilities to support exports.
  Eg: The India-Myanmar gateways at Moreh and Zokhawthar have degraded into checkpoints rather than trade hubs, limiting cross-border exchange.
• Security-Oriented Approach: Policies are driven by counterinsurgency and surveillance rather than trade promotion.
  Eg: After the Free Movement Regime was scrapped in 2024, kinship and cross-border trade in Mizoram and Manipur collapsed, replaced by securitised controls.
• Institutional Exclusion: The northeast is structurally unrepresented in national trade policy institutions.
  Eg: The Board of Trade and PM’s Economic Advisory Council lack voices from North East, leaving the region’s concerns unheard.
• Economic Marginalisation: Despite producing key commodities like tea, the region is excluded from value addition and branding.
• Neglect in Policy Design: Export schemes like PLI and RoDTEP are concentrated in industrial belts of Gujarat and Tamil Nadu, bypassing the northeast.
  Eg: The DGFT’s 2024 export strategy ran 87 pages without a single section on northeastern corridors.

Untapped trade potential of the North Eastern States

• Agro-based Exports: The region’s fertile land allows for niche agricultural exports like tea, horticulture, and spices.
  Eg: Assam’s tea can move up the value chain if supported with branding and global packaging hubs.
• Energy Exports: Expansion of Numaligarh refinery opens scope for petroleum-based exports.
  Eg: As the refinery scales to 9 million metric tonnes, it can diversify export capacity beyond crude dependency.
• Cross-border Trade with ASEAN: With 5,400 km of international borders, the northeast could serve as India’s trade bridge to Southeast Asia.
  Eg: The India-Myanmar-Thailand Trilateral Highway, if functional, would connect northeastern produce directly to ASEAN markets.
• Cultural and Ethnic Linkages: Shared kinship ties with neighbouring communities can aid trust-based trade.
• Strategic Location: Positioned at the intersection of South Asia and Southeast Asia, the northeast can reduce dependence on western ports.

Measures to integrate them into India’s export framework

• Build Physical Infrastructure: Develop highways, warehouses, and cold chains to enable large-scale exports.
  Eg: Operationalising the Trilateral Highway from Moreh could convert the border into a live trade corridor.
• Policy Inclusion: Ensure representation of northeastern states in national export bodies.
  Eg: Including Tripura and Arunachal Pradesh voices in the Board of Trade would mainstream their concerns in policy-making.
• Sectoral Support for Tea and Agro-exports: Establish packaging, branding, and research hubs locally. 
• Shift from Security to Trade Mandate: Reframe border management to prioritise trade resilience over counterinsurgency alone.
• Special Economic Corridors: Create dedicated export corridors with incentives for industries in the northeast.
  Eg: Linking Numaligarh refinery and agro-clusters in Assam to ASEAN markets could integrate the region into India’s Indo-Pacific trade vision.

Conclusion

The North East, though rich in resources and strategic location, remains excluded due to poor infrastructure, security focus, and policy neglect. With better corridors, branding hubs, and policy inclusion, it can emerge as India’s gateway to ASEAN, advancing regional growth, jobs, and Act East Policy goals.

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