ZCZC
BSS-46
BANGLADESH-INDIA-CONNECTIVITY
By Aminul Islam Mirja
Bangladesh-India sign inland, coastal connectivity agreements
NEW DELHI, Oct 25, 2018 (BSS) – Bangladesh and India today signed an agreement to launch a river cruise service connecting Kolkata’s link to India’s Tripura through Dhaka alongside inking two other deals to enhance bilateral trade connectivity through inland and coastal waterways, officials said here today.
Bangladesh’s and Indian shipping secretaries signed the agreements wrapping up a two-day standing committee meeting also formulating a Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) for passengers and cruise vessel movements on Inland Protocol route and coastal shipping routes.
A Bangladeshi official familiar with the meeting said the vessels under the river cruise services would shuttle back and forth in a newly devised route — Kolkata – Dhaka – Guwahati – Jorhat.
Bangladesh’s shipping secretary Abdus Samad and his Indian counterpart Gopal Krishna signed the second agreement on use of Chattogram and Mongla ports by India for movement of their goods in both ways.
The rest of the agreement was an addendum to the existing bilateral ‘Protocol on Inland Water Transit and Trade’ (PIWTT) that included India’s Dhubri and Bangladesh’s Pangaon as new ports of call.
The meeting agreed as well to declare India’s Badarpur on river Barak in Assam State and Ghorasal of Ashuganj in Bangladesh as “extended ports of call” on reciprocal basis.
Currently 3.5 MMT cargo is transported on protocol routes through inland waterways which is expected to increase substantially after the declaration of additional Ports of Call and extension of protocol routes.
“Many things have been discussed in the meeting to increase connectivity between the two neighbouring countries . . . and we have reached some agreements which would be benefited for both the people,” Samad told a post talks press briefing at Hotel Le Meridian in Delhi.
His Indian counterpart said alongside various issues pertaining to the protocol arrangements and improvement of inland water transportation their discussions also included an issue to allow transportation of third country cargo on the Bangladesh-India protocol routes and coastal shipping routes.
Officials familiar with the talks said the two sides also discussed on making Bangladesh’s Nakugaon Land Port Dalu ICP of India operational and to connect Bhutan’s Gelephu as a tripartite cross-border route.
The meeting also initially reviewed prospects of including India’s Dhamra Port, V.O. Chidambaranar Port, which previously were called Tuticorin Port and Kamarajar Port, under Coastal Shipping Agreement while Krishna said the issue, however, “will be further discussed in Joint Shipping Committee meeting scheduled in December, 2018”.
“The new arrangement will facilitate movement of flyash, cement, construction materials from India to Bangladesh through IWT on the Rupnarayan river,” Krishna said.
Indian North Eastern states would get connected to directly to the ports of Kolkata and Haldia in India and Mongla in Bangladesh through waterways which would facilitate movement EXIM cargo and would also reduce the logistic costs.
The meeting also agreed that a Joint Technical Committee will explore the technical feasibility of operationalisation of Dhulian-Rajshahi protocol route up to Aricha that would reduce the West Bengal’s distance with Assam by more than 450 kms on the protocol routes.
The 19th edition of the Standing Committee meeting under ‘Protocol on Inland Water Transit and Trade’ (PIWTT) between high level delegations of India and Bangladesh preceded the secretary level talks joined as well by officials of other concerned ministries and related departments.
Bangladesh’s Shipping Ministry, Board of Revenue, Directorate General of Shipping and Inland Water Transport Authority (BIWTA) comprised the Dhaka side while representatives of Indian ministries of Shipping, External Affairs, Home, Finance, DONER and Inland Waterways Authority of India (IWAI) comprised the host side.
Officials present at the meeting said India proposed for extension of the protocol routes from Kolkata upto Silchar in Assam.
An Indian shipping ministry statement said it was also decided that a Project Management Consultant for supervision and monitoring of dredging of Ashuganj-Zakiganj and Sirajganj-Daikhowa stretches of Indo-Bangladesh Protocol Route in Bangladesh will be engaged with 80 percent financial contribution from India and rest by Bangladesh.
A Joint Monitoring Committee has also been constituted for overall monitoring of the dredging works.
Besides, both sides have also agreed for development of Jogighopa as a hub/trans-shipment terminal for movement of cargo to Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland and Bhutan and notifying Munsiganj River terminal by Bangladesh Customs for routing third party Exim cargo through Kolkata Port, the statement also said.
BSS/AIM/AR/2100hrs