For the first time, the Indian Railways have carried automobile traffic from India to Bangladesh.
Indian Railways transported the first consignment of 51 TATA Ace Vehicles in a Railway Rake to Bangladesh, the Indian High Commission in Dhaka said on Tuesday.
The vehicles were loaded in 15 Parcel Vans and dispatched from Haldi Road Station of Indian Railways on Sunday and received at Benapole Station of Bangladesh Railways on Tuesday, covering a distance of 1407 km.
Bangladesh and India have continued to script ‘a relationship of Golden Chapter’ guided by the two leaders – Sheikh Hasina and Narendra Modi, despite the global crisis due to Covid-19 pandemic.
India on Monday handed over 10 railway locomotives to Bangladesh, reflecting a renewed focus on the “neighbourhood first” policy to bolster economic ties and connectivity within the region.
The first cross-border train reached Bangladesh on Sunday with 50 containers loaded with FMCG cargoes and fabrics. Last week, the first transshipment of goods (iron and pulses) from Kolkata to India’s North-East took place through Bangladesh’s Chattogram port.
Indian external affairs minister Dr. Subrahmanyam Jaishankar on Monday said the “ongoing COVID pandemic has not slowed down the pace of our overall cooperation”.
“Our two countries continue to script a relationship of ‘Shonali Adhyaya’ (golden chapter), guided by the progressive vision of PM Narendra Modi and PM Sheikh Hasina,” he said, adding that the two neighbours partnership would be “key to building a prosperous and peaceful South Asia”.
“This will be a befitting tribute to the vision of Bangabandhu in this historic Mujib Barsho,” he had said.
