India, Bangladesh PMs to Inaugurate Three Development Projects

On November 1, 2023, the Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi and the Prime Minister of Bangladesh, H.E. Sheikh Hasina, will jointly launch three Indian-assisted development projects. The three projects are the Akhaura-Agartala Cross-Border Rail Link, the Khulna-Mongla Port Rail Line, and the Maitree Super Thermal Power Plant Unit II. These projects will improve regional connectivity and energy security.

Akhaura-Agartala Cross-Border Rail Link project 

• The Akhaura-Agartala Cross-Border Rail Link is 12.24 kilometers long, including a 6.78-kilometer Dual Gauge rail route in Bangladesh and a 5.46-kilometer rail line in Tripura.
• This rail link is 15 kilometers long, with 5 kilometers in India and 10 kilometers in Bangladesh.
• The project was carried out with a grant of INR 392.52 crore from the Government of India to Bangladesh.
• The train link will promote cross-border trade and reduce travel time between Agartala and Kolkata via Dhaka significantly.

Khulna-Mongla Port Rail Line Project

• The Khulna-Mongla rail line project has received 69.18 percent of its finance from Indian Lines of Credit (LoC).
• The project was included in India's first Line of Credit given to Bangladesh in 2010.
• The  Khulna-Mongla rail line project comprises the building of roughly 65 kilometers of wide gauge rail connecting Mongla Port and the existing Khulna rail network. 
• This Rail link project establishes a connection between the broad-gauge railway network and Mongla, the second largest port in Bangladesh. 
• The Bangladesh government recently authorized freight transit and transshipment from West Bengal to the northeastern states via the ports of Chattogram and Mongla. 
• This move has greatly reduced the time and expense of carrying commodities to the landlocked northeastern states.

Maitree Super Thermal Power Project

• The Maitree Super Thermal Power Project construction was started in April 2017.
• The project was built with a USD 1.6 billion credit from the Indian Concessional Financing Scheme.
• It is a 1320 MW Super Thermal Power Plant (MSTPP) in Rampal, Bangladesh's Khulna Division. 
• Bangladesh-India Friendship Power Company (Private) Limited (BIFPCL) is the organization in charge of carrying out the implementation of the project. BIFCL is a 50:50 joint venture between NTPC Ltd of India and the Bangladesh Power Development Board (BPDB). 
• Unit I of the Maitree Super Thermal Power Plant was launched by Prime Ministers of India and Bangladesh in September 2022, while Unit II will be launched on November 1, 2023. 
• The completion of the Maitree Super Thermal Power Plant will improve energy security in Bangladesh.