The newly installed Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government in West Bengal, led by Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari, has initiated the transfer of 120 acres of land located within the Siliguri Corridor, also known as the Chicken’s Neck, to the central government. The move comes amid growing security concerns surrounding the narrow corridor that connects mainland India to its eight northeastern states.
The Siliguri Corridor is one of the most geopolitically sensitive stretches of land in South Asia. At its narrowest point, the corridor is barely around 20 to 22 kilometers wide. Nepal lies to its west, Bangladesh to its south, and Bhutan to its north. Meanwhile, the Chinese-controlled Tibetan region remains close to the northeastern side through the Chumbi Valley and Doklam area. Chinese military assets and infrastructure are positioned at a very close distance there. Nearly all overland civilian trade, military transport, fuel supply routes, and rail connectivity between India’s mainland and the Northeast pass through this narrow strip. Any disruption in the area could severely impact the movement of troops and goods to states such as Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur, Mizoram, Nagaland, Tripura, Meghalaya, and Sikkim.
The transferred land is expected to support expanded security infrastructure, border management facilities, transportation upgrades, and military logistics networks. The decision was reportedly approved alongside the transfer of seven stretches of national highways from the state Public Works Department to the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI). In addition, the National Highways and Infrastructure Development Corporation Limited (NHIDCL) will take part in the process.
Officials said the infrastructure upgrades would strengthen transport links to Sikkim, Bhutan, and Bangladesh while also improving movement between north Bengal and the strategically important Dooars region. Under this new arrangement, seven strategically important highway corridors have now been formally transferred to central control after being “stalled in the absence of a formal handover.”
The NHAI will now oversee major stretches including NH-31 from the Bihar-West Bengal border to Gazole and NH-33 up to Farakka. The 329.6-kilometer NH-312 corridor links Jangipur, Omarpur, Krishnagar, Bongaon, Basirhat, and Ghojadanga along the India-Bangladesh frontier. Authorities believe these projects will improve the Bihar-West Bengal transport corridor through Malda and Murshidabad. Furthermore, they will enhance connectivity across Nadia and North 24 Parganas districts up to the Bangladesh border at Ghojadanga.
At the same time, the NHIDCL has been assigned control of four additional strategic routes, including the Sevoke Army Cantonment-Coronation Bridge-Kalimpong-Sikkim border corridor under NH-10. Other stretches handed over to NHIDCL include the Hasimara-Jaigaon route leading to the India-Bhutan border. Additionally, the Baradighi-Mainaguri-Changrabandha corridor near the Bangladesh frontier and the Siliguri-Kurseong-Darjeeling hill road have also been transferred.
Five of the seven transferred highway sections pass directly through the Siliguri Corridor, reinforcing the region’s strategic significance. Several of these roads are considered critical military and logistical arteries for India’s northeastern sector. NH-10, which serves as the primary land link to Sikkim, and NH-110 connecting Darjeeling have long faced repeated landslides, weather-related disruptions, and structural damage. This often affects both civilian movement and military supply operations in the eastern Himalayan region.
It is not an isolated administrative action but part of a broader strategic consolidation that has been visibly underway since late 2025. In November 2025, India established three new military garrisons along the Bangladesh border specifically to reinforce the corridor’s defenses- the Lachit Borphukan Military Station near Dhubri in Assam, and forward bases at Kishanganj in Bihar and Chopra in West Bengal, both rapidly stood up under the Brahmastra Corps. The Chopra base sits less than a kilometer from Tetulia in Bangladesh’s Panchagarh district, placing it at a sensitive tactical position within the corridor itself. The Trishakti Corps, which holds overall command responsibility for the region, has already deployed advanced assets including Rafale fighter jets, BrahMos missile systems, S-400 air defense systems, and surface-to-air missile platforms across the corridor zone. The 120-acre land transfer, together with this military buildup, places additional ground under direct federal control.
In his first cabinet meeting after forming the government, Chief Minister Adhikari stated that within 45 days, land would be handed over to the Border Security Force (BSF) for fencing along the state’s borders, and directly alleged that the previous Trinamool Congress government had withheld land in ways that facilitated infiltration. This shows that the new administration is moving rapidly to align state policy with the central government’s national security priorities. In doing so, it is undoing years of friction between Kolkata and New Delhi under the previous regime.
China’s position in the region has become an increasingly pressing concern. Beijing is reportedly constructing at least two fortified air defense installations in the Tibet Autonomous Region, with satellite imagery from Planet Labs showing retractable roof shelters designed to conceal missile launch systems. From elevated positions in the eastern Himalayas, the People’s Liberation Army could potentially threaten Indian infrastructure and logistics leading toward the corridor. Also, China’s infrastructure buildup around Doklam has raised India’s strategic concern.
The transfer signals that New Delhi is preparing for a long-term strategic consolidation of the eastern frontier. With growing India-China competition, regional instability in Myanmar, evolving India-Bangladesh dynamics, and increasing military emphasis on rapid mobilization capabilities, the Siliguri Corridor is once again emerging as one of South Asia’s most closely watched geopolitical flashpoints.
Verification Note: The information in this report has been compiled from multiple credible sources and cross-checked for consistency. Data and reports have been used to corroborate events where possible. While every effort has been made to ensure accuracy, access limitations may prevent independent verification of all details.
Afiya Ibnath Ayshi is a Security and Strategic Reporting Fellow at Bangladesh Defence Journal. She covers defence, foreign affairs, and humanitarian issues, focusing on how regional and global developments influence Bangladesh’s security and diplomacy. A graduate in English from the University of Dhaka, she brings a research-based and balanced approach to her work.