The Centre on Thursday said the Act East Policy has positioned the North Eastern Region (NER) at the heart of India’s engagement with Southeast Asia, with major infrastructure, connectivity and investment initiatives aimed at accelerating the region’s economic transformation.
In a written reply in the Rajya Sabha, Minister of State for Development of North Eastern Region Dr. Sukanta Majumdar said the development of cross-border connectivity infrastructure remains a key focus of the policy. The India-Myanmar-Thailand Trilateral Highway and the Kaladan Multi-Modal Transit Transport Project continue to be the flagship connectivity projects under the initiative.
The government said the waterway component of the Kaladan project was completed and inaugurated in May 2023, while work is progressing on the 109-km two-lane road linking Paletwa in Myanmar to Zorinpui in Mizoram.
Under the India-Myanmar-Thailand Trilateral Highway project, the Tamu-Kalewa highway has already been completed and handed over to the Myanmar government, while the Kalewa-Yargi highway section was completed and handed over in October 2025.
To strengthen regional economic integration, the Centre constituted a High-Level Task Force on the North East Economic Corridor in 2025 to identify infrastructure gaps, improve trade facilitation and recommend measures to attract public and private investment. The task force submitted its report during the 73rd Plenary of the North Eastern Council in June 2026.
The ministry also highlighted the outcomes of the Rising Northeast Investors Summit held in May 2025, which focused on sectors including tourism, agro-food processing, textiles, healthcare, education, information technology, sports, infrastructure, logistics and energy. According to the government, the summit and its associated roadshows generated investment interest worth ₹4.48 lakh crore through memoranda of understanding, letters of intent and qualified investment proposals.
The government further said the North Eastern Development Finance Corporation Ltd. (NEDFi) continues to support industrial development, infrastructure, agriculture and allied sectors, besides promoting entrepreneurship and the startup ecosystem in the region through the North East Venture Fund.
The information was provided by Dr. Majumdar in response to a question in the Rajya Sabha.
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