Addressing a seminar on India's 'Look East Policy' in Shillong on Saturday, External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee stressed the need for urgently cutting transaction costs through a series of measures including simplification of border trade procedures and further improvement in physical connectivity.

He said multi-modal transport linkage among Saarc countries is key to realising the objective of connectivity within the region and beyond it to other neighbouring regions.

Mukherjee said India's northeastern states can act as a bridge to South East and East Asia. "I am sure that by gradually integrating this region through cross-border market access, the North Eastern states can become the bridge between the Indian economy and what is beyond doubt the fastest growing and dynamic region of the world", he said.

He pointed out that India was involved in a number of cross-border development projects with Myanmar in construction of road, rail links, telecommunications, information technology and power.

Discussions are on to start work on the trilateral highway project which proposes to link Moreh in Manipur to Mae Sot in Thailand via Bagan in Myanmar and efforts are underway to improve infrastructure, particularly road links, at a second India-Myanmar border trade point, the External Affairs Minister said.