President Pranab Mukherjee’s two-day visit to Arunachal Pradesh has drawn attention to the increasingly assertive claims of China on the territory of the state. It has also focused on the need to strengthen the sensitive border state’s connectivity to the rest of India and Asia as a whole. It is the second presidential visit to Arunachal in less than five years. Prime Minister Manmohan Singh went there in January 2008. China takes a dim view of these high level visits which show Delhi’s determination to make it clear to Beijing that India’s sovereignty over Arunachal Pradesh cannot be held in doubt. After the new leadership assumed office in China, talks have been held between the two neighbours about the boundary dispute. Recently, a border agreement has been signed between the two countries. During his recent visit to China, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh put the emphasis on the Panchsheel spirit engendered at the Bandung Conference held in 1954. But China still demands significant territorial concessions, especially in the Tawang region of Arunachal Pradesh. It has also opposed international development assistance to projects in the state. Moreover, it provides only stapled visas for Indian citizens from Arunachal.
Asserting formal sovereignty in the state is not the same thing as effectively integrating it through connectivity for economic development. Beijing has transformed the transport infrastructure in Tibet and its investments have made the region the fastest growing in the country. Delhi for its part has announced a variety of packages for Arunachal including improved air-links. But project implementation has lagged behind. Manmohan Singh has stressed the need for overland connectivity between India and China. President Pranab Mukherjee is expected to urge China to take a pragmatic approach to Arunachal Pradesh.
