China-Pakistan’s Footprint in Bangladesh: Revival of Lalmonirhat Airbase and Its Strategic Consequences for India

In March–April 2025, Bangladesh’s interim government initiated the revival of the World War II-era Lalmonirhat airbase, located near the India-Bangladesh border. What turned this routine infrastructure project into a geopolitical flashpoint was the confirmed involvement of China and reports of Pakistani collaboration. With this development unfolding just weeks after India’s Operation Sindoor, launched in response to the Pahalgam terror attack, the revival of the airbase has sharpened India’s strategic focus on its vulnerable Siliguri Corridor and raised concerns about a coordinated China-Pakistan encirclement in the eastern theatre.

Introduction
Understanding Lalmonirhat: History and Geography
The 2025 Revival Plan: Who Is Involved and Why
China’s Expanding Influence in India’s Neighbourhood
Pakistan’s Strategic Opportunity in the East
Siliguri Corridor: India’s Achilles’ Heel
What Has Changed in Bangladesh’s Foreign Policy?
India’s Multi-layered Response Strategy
Wider South Asian Realignments
Implications for India’s National Security Doctrine
Conclusion: A Wake-up Call for India

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1. Introduction

In the first half of 2025, a quiet but deeply consequential move unfolded in the strategic geography of South Asia. Bangladesh’s caretaker government announced the revival of a World War II-era airbase at Lalmonirhat, located barely a few kilometres from the Indian border and approximately 135 km from the vital Siliguri Corridor- India’s only land link to its northeastern states.

But what turned this into a national security issue was the active involvement of China in the planning process, along with the reported engagement of a Pakistani defense contractor. Together, these developments have set off alarm bells in India’s strategic and diplomatic circles. This blog dissects the entire issue in depth, examining the actors, objectives, regional power shifts, and the implications for India’s sovereignty and security architecture.

2. Understanding Lalmonirhat: History and Geography

The Lalmonirhat airstrip was built in the 1930s under British rule and used by the Allied forces during World War II as part of the China-Burma-India (CBI) theatre. Post-partition, Pakistan revived it briefly for civilian use in 1958, but the project did not sustain.

Geographically, its location today makes it of critical concern to India:

12–15 km from the Indian border
Close to Cooch Behar and North Dinajpur districts in West Bengal
Within aerial range of the Siliguri Corridor, a 22-km-wide land bridge connecting the Indian mainland to the entire northeast

The terrain offers clear line-of-sight for aerial surveillance and radar systems, which could pose a direct threat to Indian troop movement and logistical infrastructure.

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3. The 2025 Revival Plan: Who Is Involved and Why

In March 2025, Bangladesh’s interim government announced plans to redevelop the Lalmonirhat airbase under a strategic aviation corridor initiative. Initially framed as a civilian upgradation project, the initiative soon saw site visits by Chinese officials, followed by reports that a Pakistani defense firm may be subcontracted for logistics and construction.

This three-party coordination, Dhaka’s political nod, China’s investment, and Pakistan’s logistical presence, suggests the airbase could potentially be developed for dual-use infrastructure: civilian on the surface, strategic in capability.

For Bangladesh, this presents an opportunity to diversify its economic and diplomatic dependencies. For China and Pakistan, it is a chance to reshape the security dynamics of India’s eastern theatre.

4. China’s Expanding Influence in India’s Neighbourhood

The Lalmonirhat revival is not an isolated development. It fits into China’s broader “String of Pearls” strategy, which involves creating a network of commercial and military-grade infrastructure around India. Existing links include:

Gwadar Port (Pakistan)
Hambantota Port (Sri Lanka)
Kyaukpyu Port (Myanmar)
Increased investments in Nepal and the Maldives

Adding Lalmonirhat to this map gives China a terrestrial foothold in India’s eastern backyard, enabling greater surveillance capabilities and undermining India’s traditional sphere of influence in Bangladesh.

5. Pakistan’s Strategic Opportunity in the East

Pakistan, long isolated in South Asia post-1971, views this development as an opening to re-enter eastern South Asian dynamics. The potential presence of Pakistani contractors or advisors in the airbase’s revival allows Islamabad to:

Forge new defense diplomacy in Dhaka
Collaborate with China on eastern containment of India
Symbolically reclaim lost ground in Bangladesh

This is part of Pakistan’s broader tactical realignment after its marginalisation in Afghanistan and the Arab Gulf.

6. Siliguri Corridor: India’s Achilles’ Heel

India’s Siliguri Corridor, or Chicken’s Neck, is arguably its most vulnerable strategic asset. It is:

Narrow, only 22 km at its thinnest point
Bordered by Nepal, Bhutan, and Bangladesh
A vital artery for civilian access and military movement to Arunachal Pradesh, Sikkim, Assam, and beyond

A Chinese-aligned or dual-use airbase in Lalmonirhat could pose:

ISR threats (Intelligence, Surveillance, Reconnaissance)
Potential air denial or interdiction capabilities
Long-term pressure on Indian defence logistics in the east

7. What Has Changed in Bangladesh’s Foreign Policy?

For decades, India and Bangladesh maintained stable, cooperative ties, particularly under Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina. However, her resignation amid domestic political turmoil has led to a foreign policy vacuum.

The interim government under Muhammad Yunus has shown openness to Chinese funding and Pakistani diplomacy. Recent developments include:

New trade agreements with China
Revival of direct dialogue with Pakistan
Cooling off of India-Bangladesh energy and border cooperation

This suggests a pivot toward a more multi-aligned, China-leaning foreign policy.

8. India’s Multi-layered Response Strategy

India’s reaction to Lalmonirhat has involved tactical restraint but strategic escalation:

Increased reconnaissance via satellites (ISRO) and drones
Forward deployments in Eastern Command
Track 1.5 diplomacy urging Bangladesh to maintain neutrality
Trade restrictions on key Bangladeshi exports
Engagement of BIMSTEC and IORA to reassert regional leadership

India is also investing in dual-use infrastructure across the northeast to enhance connectivity and deterrence.

9. Wider South Asian Realignments

Lalmonirhat is a signal in a wider pattern. Across South Asia:

Nepal and Maldives are warming up to Beijing
Sri Lanka is increasingly indebted to Chinese loans
Bhutan and Myanmar remain neutral but vulnerable

India’s traditional regional dominance is now challenged by China’s economic diplomacy and infrastructure footprint, backed by strategic tact from Pakistan.

10. Implications for India’s National Security Doctrine

This development may necessitate an update in India’s national security posture, particularly in these domains:

Eastern theatre doctrine, including airbase distribution and LAC coordination
ISR capacity across India’s northeastern borders
Multi-domain coordination (land, air, cyber, space)
Strategic communication and narrative diplomacy

India must not only defend territory, but also its regional credibility and deterrence value.

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11. Conclusion: A Wake-up Call for India

The revival of the Lalmonirhat airbase, under the shadows of Beijing and Islamabad, represents a new kind of strategic encroachment. It is not loud, not kinetic, not yet militarised. But it is layered, calibrated, and capable of reshaping South Asia’s power equilibrium. India’s eastern border, once considered secure is now a frontier of concern.

This is a moment for India to reinvest in strategic foresight, regional diplomacy, and decisive infrastructure, lest encirclement becomes entrapment.