Kohima: Nagaland Chief Minister Neiphiu Rio has exuded confidence that building of an express highway to South East Asia through the Northeast will boost trade, commerce and other such activities in the region.

Speaking at a banquet hosted by him in honour of participants of first India-ASEAN (Association of South East Asian Nations) car rally last night (Nov 23, 2004), Rio asserted that integrating the region with the ASEAN countries would open up new opportunities of cooperation in various fields and usher in a new era of trade, commerce and prosperity in the land-locked region.

The State Government also organised a cultural show for the rallyists who arrived in Kohima late in the evening after covering 364 km from Guwahati on their onward journey to Indonesia in the next 19 days.

The Chief Minister ceremonially sent-off the rally from Kohima local ground, saying that the participants would carry the goodwill from the people of Nagaland.

After a brief halt at Manipur capital Imphal, the rallyists will reach Moreh-Tamu on the Indo-Myanmar border in the afternoon and make the onward move to Mandaley tomorrow (Nov 25, 2004) morning, according to the organisers.

The rally has been jointly organised by the Ministry of External Affairs and Confederation Of India Industry (CII) to raise the level of public consciousness of India-ASEAN relations vis-a-vis free trade area, and enhance trade, investment, tourism and people-to-people contact.