Economics Times, June 15, 2020
In the first trial, India will carry goods to Tripura and adjoining states via Bangladesh’s Akhaura and Bibirbazar land ports after they arrive at the Chittagong port, they said. Such an arrangement would help India ship goods to and from its north-eastern region by waterways and then by road through Bangladesh. Dhaka is expected to benefit from fees charged on the movements of cargo.
While Nepal continues to act tough over a land bridge, India’s eastern neighbour Bangladesh has decided to open a new chapter in regional connectivity, enabling easy access to landlocked north-eastern states.
A trial run of trans-shipment of Indian goods through Bangladesh will take place this month notwithstanding the pandemic, officials in the know told ET.
In the first trial, India will carry goods to Tripura and adjoining states via Bangladesh’s Akhaura and Bibirbazar land ports after they arrive at the Chittagong port, they said. Such an arrangement would help India ship goods to and from its north-eastern region by waterways and then by road through Bangladesh. Dhaka is expected to benefit from fees charged on the movements of cargo.
The routes suggested for this trans-shipment include, among others, from the Chittagong port or Mongla port to Agartala via Akhaura; from Chittagong or Mongla to Dawki via Tamabil; from Chittagong or Mongla to Sutarkandi via Sheola and from Chittagong or Mongla to Bibirbazar via Simantapur.
Bangladesh’s state minister of shipping, Khalid Mahmud Chowdhury, on Wednesday told English daily Dhaka Tribune that this trans-shipment would benefit the economies of both Bangladesh and India. “In addition, it will enhance our regional connectivity, too. The shipping ministry is ready to start the trans-shipment within a very short time,” he told the paper.
Bipul Chatterjee, executive director at global public policy think tank CUTS International, told ET that this would foster multi-modal connectivity for the growth of regional trade.
“Other than reducing the time and cost of sending our goods to Northeast India, it will further secure this region from external forces. Together, India and Bangladesh have played a no trump
game” Chatterjee said.
Last month, India and Bangladesh expanded the scope of inland water transport mechanisms that would enable them to boost trade in the region. This initiative will allow export of Bhutanese and
north-eastern cargo to Bangladesh and easy access for traders to the hinterland of that country.
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