'Bangladesh's narrow strips of land more vulnerable': Himanta's counter after Dhaka's 'chicken neck' remark

Himanta Biswa Sarma also cited the 28-km long Chittagong Corridor from South Tripura till the Bay of Bengal

Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said that those who "habitually threaten" India on the "chicken neck corridor", should note that Bangladesh has two such narrow strips of land which are "far more vulnerable".

India's chicken's neck, known as the Siliguri corridor, is a narrow strip of land, measuring around 22 km-35 km in width, that connects the northeast region with the rest of India.

"To those who habitually threaten India on the 'Chicken Neck Corridor', should note these facts as well: Bangladesh has two of its own 'chicken necks'. 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 rest of Bangladesh," said Sarma in a post on X.

He also cited the 28-km long Chittagong Corridor from South Tripura till the Bay of Bengal. "This corridor, smaller than India's chicken neck, is the only link between Bangladesh's economic capital and political capital," he said.

According to him, the  neighbouring country, disruption in one of these "chicken necks" will cut off the link between its economic and political capitals, and disruption in the other will isolate the entire Rangpur division from the rest of the country.

"I am only presenting geographical facts that some may tend to forget. Just like India's Siliguri Corridor, our neighbouring country is also embedded with two narrow corridors of theirs," the chief minister added.

What is the chicken neck corridor?

The Siliguri Corridor is a narrow stretch of land in West Bengal that connects India’s mainland to its northeastern states — Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland, Manipur, Mizoram, Tripura and Meghalaya, collectively known as the Seven Sisters. This land bridge, just about 22 kilometres wide at its narrowest point, lies between Nepal to the north and Bangladesh to the south.

Its geographical criticality has earned it the nickname “chicken’s neck” in strategic and military circles.

Last month,  Yunus had urged China to extend its economic influence to Bangladesh, saying that India's northeastern states being landlocked could prove to be an opportunity.

"The seven states of India, the eastern part of India, are called the seven sisters. They are a landlocked region of India. They have no way to reach out to the ocean," Yunus said. He called Bangladesh the "only guardian of the ocean" in the region.

In late March, Yunus claimed that Bangladesh was the sole "guardian of the ocean (Bay of Bengal)," as India's northeastern states were "landlocked".

During his four-day visit to China, he said this opens up a "huge possibility" and urged Beijing to extend its economic influence to his country.

Biswa Sarma had called the statement "offensive and strongly condemnable".