The new trade treaty between India and China signed in Beijing this week will usher in a new era in trade and commerce in the eastern Himalayan region, including Sikkim, North Bengal and the North-Eastern states, giving the region's sagging economy a much-needed boost, experts and industry officials said in Siliguri.

The former head of Himalayan Studies under North Bengal University, B P Mishra said the trade route, Nathula Pass, connecting Tibet with Sikkim, had a glorious past.

He said the pass, which was a busy and significant trade route even in the Mughal period, could change the passive economic scenario of North Bengal in particular, if trade was 'handled with professionalism and care'.

Sikkim and the North Eastern states could also take advantage of the historic trade route, Mishra said.

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The Federation of Chamber of Commerce and Industries of North Bengal, the umbrella organisation of traders and businessmen of North Bengal, also lauded Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajapyee for his initiative in boosting Sino-Indian trade.

The general secretary of FOCIN, Biswajit Das said that Nathula Pass would revitalise the trade and commerce of the region and encourage investors to set up auxiliary industries.

There was also possibility for China and Bangladesh to go for trade using the corridor, which would revamp the transport sector of North Bengal, Das said.

Describing reopening of Nathula Pass trade route as a "much awaited blessing," the president of Siliguri Merchants' Association, Sujit Bose said that Siliguri, which was already one of the fastest growing cities in the country, would become more important once Sino-Indian trade through Nathula takes off.

Even the mango growers of Malda, upset over the fruit business for a couple of years, found a ray of hope as China had agreed to import Indian fruits, West Bengal Exporter Co-ordination Forum sources said.