In a bid to strengthen bilateral relations, Indian Railways virtually handed over 20 Broad Gauge (BG) locomotives to Bangladesh in a ceremony held at Rail Bhavan New Delhi. The event was attended by Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw and Bangladesh Minister for Railways Nurul Islam Sujan.
These locomotives, provided as grant assistance from the Government of India, fulfill an important commitment made during the visit of Prime Minister of Bangladesh Sheikh Hasina to India in October 2019.
The Indian side has suitably modified the locomotives to meet the requirements of Bangladesh Railway. This handover will contribute to handling the increasing volume of passenger and freight train operations in Bangladesh.
Speaking on this occasion, Ashwini Vaishnaw said, “India’s relationship with Bangladesh is civilizational, cultural, social and economic. Prime Ministers of both the countries are playing proactive role to improve bilateral relationship across social, economic and political sectors. Indian Railways are also playing a vital role in improving and strengthening rail connectivity across the border and improving trade between both the countries.“
“As of now, five BG connectivity are operational, namely Geda- Darsana, Benapol- Petrapol, Singhabad- Rohanpur, Radhikapur- Birol and Haldibari-Chilahati. Work on two more cross border rail connectivities, Akhaura-Agartala and Mahihasan-Shahbazpur are progressing well and are likely to be completed and commissioned shortly,” he added.
Addressing the gathering virtually, Bangladesh Minister for Railways Nurul Islam Sujan said, “I express my gratitude to the Indian Government for their support. Previously in June 2020 Indian Government provided 10 locomotives to Bangladesh as grant. We express our heartfelt gratitude to India for providing broad gauge locomotives.
Sujan stated that the supply of broad gauge locomotives will improve both goods and passenger trains, and he hoped for increased collaboration in the railway sector between the two countries.
Currently, three pairs of passenger trains operate between India and Bangladesh, fostering people-to-people contact. These include the Kolkata-Dhaka Maitree Express, Kolkata-Khulna Bandhan Express, and New Jalpaiguri-Dhaka Mitali Express.
According to the Ministry of Railways, Rail trade between India and Bangladesh has witnessed consistent growth, with nearly 100 cargo trains exchanged per month. In the last financial year, approximately 2.66 million metric tons of cargo were transported to Bangladesh.
It added that the exported commodities include stone, DOC, food grains, china clay, gypsum, maize, onions, and other essential items as per demand from India. Since 2020, permission has been granted to operate parcel container and NMG rakes, which typically transport agricultural products, fabrics, finished goods, light commercial vehicles, and tractors. A new traffic of geo-synthetic bags has recently commenced, and three parcel trains have been sent from Gujarat.
In line with India’s commitment to improving rail services in Bangladesh, 10 BG diesel locomotives were handed over to Bangladesh on a grant basis in July 2020. According to Bangladesh’s reports, these locomotives have been performing well and contributing to the smooth movement of rail traffic in the country.
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