India’s port restrictions on Bangladesh to boost northeast's atmanirbhar push: Former envoy Veena Sikri

Former Indian High Commissioner to Bangladesh, Veena Sikri, has raised concerns regarding the geopolitical narrative emerging from Bangladesh, particularly in relation to India's North Eastern region and trade dynamics.

In a strong statement, Sikri pointed out that various Islamist and jihadist factions in Bangladesh have been circulating provocative maps promoting the idea of a so-called "Greater Bangla," which allegedly includes parts of India's North East. “There are many maps floating around in Bangladesh by all the Islamist parties and jihadist groups — they're talking about Greater Bangla and including the North East,” she said.

She added that while Bangladesh’s Chief Adviser Muhammad Yunus is officially advocating for closer ties with North East India — under the larger framework of regional cooperation like BBIN (Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, and Nepal) — his actions seem contradictory. “On one hand, he claims to be promoting regional connectivity through BBIN, yet on the other, his policies are hampering exports and imports from India’s North Eastern states,” Sikri noted.

Her remarks came in response to India's recent step to impose port restrictions on certain imports from Bangladesh, a move that is seen as a strategic push to boost self-reliance in the North Eastern region. “I believe this will only encourage our North Eastern states to become more Atmanirbhar and strengthen their local manufacturing capacities,” she concluded.