Himanta wades into Chicken Neck Corridor row, highlights Bangladesh's own "chicken necks"

Guwahati: Assam chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said those who habitually threaten India on the “Chicken Neck Corridor” must know that Bangladesh has two of its own “chicken necks” and both are far more vulnerable.

“First is the 80 Km North Bangladesh Corridor – from Dakhin Dinajpur to South West Garo Hills. Any disruption here can completely isolate the entire Rangpur division from the rest of Bangladesh. Second is the 28 km Chittagong Corridor, from South Tripura to the Bay of Bengal. This corridor, smaller than India’s chicken neck, is the only link between Bangladesh’s economic capital and political capital,” Sarma posted on X on Sunday.

“I am only presenting geographical facts that some may tend to forget. Just like India’s Siliguri Corridor ( also known as the Chicken’s Neck) our neighbouring country is also embedded with two narrow corridors of theirs,” he further wrote.

Meanwhile Assam Police launched a massive drive to detect illegal Bangladeshi immigrants.

Sources said that over 150 people were said to be detained from Guwahati and its adjoining areas alone. The drive by police started on Saturday night.

Sarma recently said that Bangladesh has two Chicken neck and if Bangladesh targets India' s chicken neck, we will target the chicken neck of Bangladesh.
The Siliguri corridor that connects India"s northeast with the mainland India is refered as chicken neck. There is concern following reports that China is aiding Bangladesh in reviving and WW II airbase at Lalmonirhar , located close to Indian border near Siliguri. The defunct airbase is under control of Bangladesh Air Force but inactive for decades.

Last month Sarma had condemned Bangladesh interim government’s chief advisor Professor Muhammad Yunus’s statement that Dhaka was the only guardian of the seas for India’s landlocked Northeastern states and said this remark underscores the persistent vulnerability narrative associated with India’s strategic “Chicken’s Neck” corridor.

During his four-day visit to China Yunus said “Seven states of India, eastern part of India, called seven sisters, are landlocked country, landlocked region of India. They have no way to reach out to the ocean. We are the only guardian of the ocean for all this region. So, this opens a huge possibility. This could be an extension of the Chinese economy. Build things, produce things, market things, bring things to China, bring it out to the whole rest of the world.”