Chabahar Port
Chabahar port is located on the Makran coast of Sistan and Balochistan province in Iran. It is located near the Gulf of Oman and at the mouth of the Strait of Hormuz. It is the only Iranian deep water port with direct access to the Indian Ocean. Afghanistan, Central Asian countries, Russia and European countries can be reached through this port.
It is located at a distance of 353 nautical miles from Dubai, 455 nautical miles from Karachi in Pakistan and 843 nautical miles from Mumbai. It is just 72 km from the Gwadar port being developed by China on the Makran coast of Balochistan province of Pakistan. Is located at a distance.
Importance of Chabahar Port
Chabahar port is very important for India for the following reasons:
Economic
- It gives India access to trade with Afghanistan will provide.
- This port can be used to start the International North-South Transport Corridor (INSTC) project.
- A developed free trade area near this port can be an important trade center with the oil rich countries of West Asia.India and Iran are working on a plan to develop Chabahar port as a transit hub to facilitate easy access to the Central Asia oil fields.
- In future, petroleum products can be supplied by sea pipeline from Chabahar port to India.
- Due to the low transportation cost, India will get the facility to import crude oil, urea and dry fruits at low prices,which will reduce their import cost manifold. Along with this, India can also invest in fertilizer plants in Iran, which can save about 50% fertilizer subsidy.
Political Importance
- Chabahar port can play a major role in reducing Pakistan's strategic hold on a landlocked country like Afghanistan.Iran's existing road network from Chabahar can be linked to Zaranj in Afghanistan which is about 880 km from the port. This will make it easier to access the Garland Highway in Afghanistan the Zaranj-Delaram road built by India in 2009.
- This highway makes it easy to reach four major cities ofAfghanistan - Herat, Kandahar, Kabul and Mazar-e-Sharif by road.
- may be recalled that Pakistan has refused entry to India to trade with Afghanistan through the Wagah border.
- The Chinese presence in the Arabian Sea through the Gwadar port in Pakistan can be counter balanced by the Chabahar port being developed by India.
- Naval operations can be conducted from Chabahar port to prevent maritime piracy around the African coast. Thus it gives India a strategic and strategic edge in the western Arabian Sea.
Some Problem of These Port
- Ongoing tensions in the Middle East (Syria, Iraq, Yemen and more recently, diplomatic disputes over Qatar) can negatively affect the importance of this port developed by India.
- The strained relations between Iran and the US can also slow down the pace of this project.
- The non-availability of good infrastructure in the form of roads to access the Central Asian economies puts a question mark on India's hopes of getting the maximum benefit from the project.
