India, Bhutan Sign MoU for First Cross-Border Rail Link

India and Bhutan have signed a memorandum of understanding to establish the first cross-border rail link. In this memorandum of understanding, India and Bhutan have envisioned the establishment of the first cross-border rail link connecting Kokrajhar and Gelephu, and Banarhat and Samtse.

• India and Bhutan have signed a memorandum of understanding to establish the first cross-border rail link. In this memorandum of understanding, India and Bhutan have envisioned the establishment of the first cross-border rail link connecting Kokrajhar and Gelephu, and Banarhat and Samtse.
• Chairman of the Railway Board Satish Kumar and Bhutan’s Foreign Secretary Aum Pema Choden signed a formal inter-governmental memorandum of understanding (MoU) to establish railway connectivity.
• For this, India’s Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri held discussions in New Delhi with his Bhutanese counterpart Aum Pema Choden.
• These two projects were eventually advanced after Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Bhutan in March 2024.
• In addition, they welcomed the successful commissioning of all six units of the 1020 megawatt Punatsangchhu-II hydropower project.
• Speaking on the occasion, Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri said that this would be the first set of rail connectivity projects by India with Bhutan. At present, the Himalayan nation Bhutan has no railway network.

Kokrajhar and Gelephu, and Banarhat and Samtse

• Both these projects will start from the Indian railway network in Kokrajhar in Assam and Banarhat in West Bengal.
• The construction of the approximately 69 km long rail project between Kokrajhar and Gelephu will be carried out at an estimated cost of Rs. 3,456 crore.
• The construction of the 20 km long Banarhat-Samtse rail project will be carried out at a cost of Rs. 577 crore. The minister said that the entire investment in these rail projects will be made by India.
• In the case of the Gelephu line, 2.39 km is on the Bhutanese side and 66.66 km on the Indian side, while the Samtse rail line is about 2.13 km on the Bhutanese side and about 17.42 km on the Indian side.
• The new Kokrajhar-Gelephu line will directly connect Sarpang district of Bhutan and Kokrajhar and Chirang districts of Assam in India. It will have a total of six stations: Balagaon, Garubhassa, Runikhata, Shantipur, Dadgiri and Gelephu.
• This project will include two important bridges, two viaducts, 29 major bridges, 65 minor bridges, two goods sheds, one overpass and 39 underpasses. The construction period of the project is four years.
• Similarly, the second project will connect Samtse district of Bhutan with Jalpaiguri district of West Bengal in India. It will have two stations: Ambari and Samtse. In addition, this project will include one major bridge, 24 minor bridges, one overpass and 37 underpasses. The construction of the Samtse line will be completed in three years.