Iran to build India road

New Delhi: In a reversal of roles, Iran has stepped in to build a road network in India even as New Delhi faces the wrath of terrorists in building a major highway in Afghanistan that will shorten the distance between Kabul and the Iranian port of Chahbahar by at least 800 km.

An Iranian company, Technic, has won a contract valued at $1.36 million for constructing roads as part of a network that will link India’s northeast to the northwest and the southeast to the southwest in the broad shape of a square. The Iranian mission confirmed the contract, which requires Iran to complete its end of the project in 30 months. Other companies are also participating in the mammoth project with Technic bagging a major portion of the proposed road network in southern India.

Road diplomacy, introduced first by the NDA government under then Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee, has worked well to bridge the stresses and strains of bilateral relations. New Delhi has undertaken a major project to construct the 218-km Kandahar-Herat highway that will shorten the distance between Iran’s Chabahar port to Kabul. India is investing Rs 378 crores in this project, which has invited terrorist attacks on the employees working to build the road. Iran is currently building the Chahabahar-Milak-Zaranj road in Afghanistan. The three countries —India, Iran and Afghanistan — had signed a memorandum of understanding in January 2003 allowing duty-free access to Chahbahar port for both Afghan and Indian goods. Iranian President Mohammad Khatami was the chief guest for Republic Day at the time when the broad understanding to develop roads and economic ties was reached between the two governments.

India is constructing the Zaranj-Delaram road in south-western Afghanistan and is committed to rebuilding the railroad from Chahbahar to link it to the Iranian railway network. Iran is upgrading the port to international standards. India’s involvement in road construction in Afghanistan has made it the target of terror attacks, but this has not stopped the government from pursuing what is a strategic objective for the region. The roads under construction will give India greater access to Central Asia, bypassing Pakistan, which is not willing at this stage to even allow a route passing through its territory for Indian goods.