The recent visit by the Indian Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee to China has set the ink flowing in the South Asian media, particularly because it comes together with a definite thaw in the New Delhi-Islamabad relationship. Vajpayee´s visit to Beijing was important in many respects. It was "the first prime ministerial visit to China after India became a nuclear state, which means the meeting took place within the framework of a new power configuration, in a changed geopolitical context. At the same time, the agreement to allow trade across the Sikkim-Tibet border cleverly unravelled a pesky knot that had bedevilled Sino-Indian relationships for much too long. By the simple act of agreeing on cross-border trade at one point — Nathu La –– the two governments rendered moot the discussion on Indian recognition of China´s annexation of Tibet and India´s annexation of Sikkim.
The trade across the border, of course, can have a bilateral confidence building dimension all its own. To develop Tibet, China needs access to the sea promised by Highway 3, which leads down to Siliguri and on to the Calcutta port. Once this corridor generates economic dividends for both countries, the ghost of the 1962 border war between India and China may finally be exorcised. At the same time, it is possible that uncharted developments may soon overtake the Indian northeast, especially if an energised economy dilutes the sanctity of the internal state security apparatus that has been built up in this region. Who knows, even faraway Calcutta´s trade may see a revival of sorts.
The immediate beneficiary of the opening up of the Nathu La passage to the Chumbi valley in Tibet en route to Lhasa is the state of Sikkim and its Chief Minister Pawan Kumar Chamling. At the same time, now that the Nathu La is open, it is incongruous to maintain the lock on the all-weather route up from Kalimpong via the alternate Jelep La, which is also more direct. Not opening Jelep La may, however, be a calculated holding back, as the Indians give themselves time to see what the cost of freeing trade access for cheap Chinese goods, previously confined to the grey market, means for domestic producers vis-à-vis the Northeast market. However, if the numbers work out right and Jelep La is opened, Darjeeling district may expect to see a revival of its fortunes. Unlike Sikkim, Darjeeling is not a recipient of central largesse and it has started going to seed, as the local economy stagnates.
The 1962 Sino-Indian war battered the Indian establishment´s psyche, converting the Himalayan rim into a super-sensitive border region replete with travel restrictions. It also led to a surge in mountain road-building and the very presence of security forces led to a militarisation of regions and societies (especially in the Northeast) that had their own brewing internal conflicts and disputes with the centre.