作者：《印度教徒报》记者阿图尔·阿内加

发表时间：印度时间2017年7月15日18:18

在四周茂密植被的掩映下，昆明长水国际机场雄踞于近七千英尺（约合2100多米）的高地，守望未来。这庞大机场的主航站楼于五年前建成，令人瞠目结舌的是，仅这航站楼就占地超五百万平方英尺（约合46.5万平方米）。航站楼里有六十多个登机口，旅客们在前往各个登机口登机的途中，往往更倾向于搭乘电瓶车而不愿走路。

为实现2020年承接四千三百万人次旅客的目标，长水机场正蓄势待发。现如今，昆明迅速崛起为中国西南地区的大都市。昆明是云南的省会，云南与缅甸、越南、老挝接壤。于是，中国规划者们将长水机场定位为通往南亚、东南亚门户的设计就在意料之中了。这样的角色定位与新疆乌鲁木齐机场的定位很像。不过，乌鲁木齐地窝堡机场的地理轨迹却不一样，它将助推中国面向中亚和西亚的合作。

长水机场航站楼里，东南亚风情呼之欲出。机场大厅内墙上挂着数个硕大的电子滚动屏。当旅客在这些屏幕上搜寻抵达/出发信息时，常会看到诸如泰国的曼谷，新加坡的新加坡市、越南的河内、文莱的斯里巴加湾市、越南的富国岛，或者泰国的普吉岛等城市的名字。每天都有航班从昆明飞往陆路距离两千三百公里开外的加尔各答。山东航空公司也已开通了自昆明至新德里的航班。

不同于世界上大多数标准航空枢纽，昆明长水机场散发出了云南独特的味道。咖啡馆还供应普洱茶。这种经发酵后冲泡的深色茶饮产自云南著名的六大茶山。六大茶山距西双版纳——中国通往老挝与缅甸的大门——不远。除了茶之外，西双版纳还以其佛教寺庙而闻名。这其中就包括著名的曼飞龙塔。那儿有雨林，还零星分布着亚洲象。长水机场摆放着大包小包的鲜花饼，甚是诱惑。鲜花饼的饼馅由糖糟玫瑰花瓣制成，是云南的特色美味。

省内互联互通

长水机场还联通着云南省内许多城市，这些城市都在努力融入国家的主流。例如，不到三刻钟的时间便可自昆明抵达文山州的主要城市文山市，那儿距中越边境不远。

文山市内的玉米研究中心集中展示了文山在高产玉米品种方面的开发成果，周边东南亚国家也需要这些高产的玉米品种。该中心已在马来西亚、缅甸、泰国和老挝设立了研究部门。除了研究开发方面的合作之外，该中心还取得了在缅甸和老挝境内耕种土地的许可证。

“本地区国家与中国在研究方面开展的合作十分重要，有利于提升整个地区的农业技术水平，”泰国驻华大使毕力亚·针蓬说道。毕力亚·针蓬大使是作为外交官及媒体记者团中的一员到访当地的。当被问到准允外国企业在国内拥有土地所有权的行为是否会遭到当地农民抵制时，他答道：“我们泰国在东部经济区划定了一块区域，若确能在这区域内开发出新技术，这区域的土地就可对外租借90年。除此之外，我们是不会将任何土地给外国人的。”

文山同时还是三七之乡，三七是一种治疗心血管疾病的中草药。“我们正在成立一个产业园，以产业化的规模种植三七。”文山三七科技园的当地管理人员冼仁东（音译）说道。

（本文作者阿图尔·阿内加为《印度教徒报》驻华记者）

China’s Gateway to Southeast Asia Atul Aneja

UPDATED: JULY 15, 2017 18:18 IST

Set amid lush greenery and occupying a height of nearly 7,000 feet, the Changshui international airport in Kunming has been built for the future. Constructed five years ago, the main terminal of this massive structure alone is spread over a jaw-dropping 5 million square feet. Many passengers wanting to access the terminal’s more than five dozen gates prefer to ride golf carts, instead of walking, as part of the pre-boarding ritual.

In tune with its ambitions, the airport is gearing up to handle 43 million passengers by 2020. Kunming, now fast-emerging as southwest China’s rising metropolis, is the capital of Yunnan, a province that shares borders with Myanmar, Vietnam and Laos. Unsurprisingly, Chinese planners have developed the airport as the gateway to the South and Southeast Asia. That role is similar to the one ascribed to Urumqi in Xinjiang. But the Urumqi Diwopu airport will have a different geographical footprint. It will serve as China’s spur for an outreach mainly towards Central and West Asia.

The flavour of Southeast Asia is palpable in the terminal of the Changshui airport. Passengers seeking arrival or departure information are likely to encounter names of cities such as Bangkok, Singapore, Hanoi, Bandar Seri Begawan, Phu Quoc or Phuket on the giant electronic scroll monitors fixed inside the vast terminal halls. There are daily flights from Kunming to Kolkata, around 2,300 km away by road. Besides, Shandong Airlines now flies regularly to New Delhi from Kunming.

Unlike most standard air hubs across the globe, Kunming airport radiates a unique flavour of Yunnan. Cafés offer Pu’er tea, a dark fermented brew, typical of Yunnan’s famous Six Great Tea Mountains. These elevations are not far from Xishuangbanna — China’s gateway to Laos and Myanmar. Apart from tea, Xishuangbanna is known for its Buddhist temples, including the famous Manfeilong Pagodas. There are rainforests here, and also a sporadic presence of Asian elephants. At the airport, packets of flower pastries filled with a sticky, sweetened rose petal paste — a typical Yunnan delicacy — are a big draw.

Interior Connectivity

The airport also links many of Yunnan’s inner cities, which are struggling to integrate in the national mainstream. For instance, it takes less than 45 minutes to arrive at Wenshan — the main city of the Wenshan prefecture, not far from the border with Vietnam.

A maize research centre in the city highlights Wenshan’s attempt to develop high-yield varieties, which would also be in demand in neighbouring Southeast Asian countries. The centre has already set up research units in Malaysia, Myanmar, Thailand and Laos. Apart from collaborating in research and development, the centre has also obtained a licence to farm in Myanmar and Laos.

“This research cooperation between regional countries and China is very important to improve the agricultural technology for the whole region,” says Piriya Khempon, Thailand’s Ambassador to China, who was part of a delegation of diplomats and journalists visiting the area. Asked whether allowing foreign companies land ownership could meet local farmer resistance, he said: “We have a designated zone in Thailand’s eastern economic zone where we can give land on a 90-year lease, provided new technology is developed there. Outside this area, we do not give any land to foreigners.”

Wenshan is also the home of Notoginseng, a herb used for treating cardiovascular disorders. “We are setting up an industrial park to grow this herb on an industrial scale,” says Xian Ren Dong, a local official at Wenshan’s Notoginseng Science and Technology Park.