STILWELL ROAD

original name Ledo Road, highway 478 mi (769 km) long that links northeastern India with the Burma Road (q.v.), which runs from Burma to China. During World War II the Stilwell Road was a strategic military route. U.S. Army engineers began construction of the highway in December 1942 to link the railheads of Ledo (Assam, now in Arunachal Pradesh, India) and Mogaung (Burma), and Chinese troops later aided in the project. The highway crossed into Burma through the difficult Pangsau Pass of the Patkai Range and was known as the Ledo Road until January 1945, when a connection via Myitkyina and Bhamo was completed to the Burma Road at Mu-se. Chiang Kai-shek then renamed the highway in honour of the U.S. general Joseph W. Stilwell. It was officially abandoned by the United States in October 1945, but it remains a major internal route.