Trial run on Akhaura-Agartala international railway line connecting India & B’desh successful

On Monday, the inaugural test run of a freight train took place between Northeast India and Bangladesh.

The journey began at the Gangasagar railway station on the Bangladeshi side and concluded at Nischintapur in Tripura, India.

This milestone was achieved ten years after both nations signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to initiate the inaugural cross-border railway service between Akhaura, Bangladesh and Agartala, India.

Sunindra Chaudhury, an executive engineer from the Indian Railways said, “It is the inaugural freight train journey on the meter gauge, entering Nischintapur from Bangladesh. The total distance covered from Gangasagar to this point is 6.1 kilometers, and the overall project length is 12.24 kilometers, comprising 5.46 kilometers on the Indian side and 6.7 kilometers in Bangladesh.

Gangasagar serves as the primary station on the Bangladesh side, establishing the connection to India via Nischintapur. The initial trial run has been successful.”

He added, “The trail run in the meter gauge portion is successfully done today. Within 1-2 months, the railway link will be connected to connect Agartala railway station.

The line will be opened very soon for goods trains. However, there are some formalities for passenger trains that need to be carried out by the Indian Railways and the Bangladesh Railway Board.

Md Rafizul Rahman, the Bangladeshi locomotive engineer in charge of the freight train, mentioned that he embarked from the Gangasagar railway station and reached the Akhaura railway station with a total of 14-15 individuals on board, including officials and other personnel.

He also said, “This railway route would benefit the passengers looking to travel to various destinations of India via Agartala’s Maharaja Bir Bikram (MBB) Airport.”

As per the standard operating procedure, the freight train would return to Bangladesh after necessary formalities.