Modi, Hasina inaugurate oil pipeline, rail projects

Shubhadeep Choudhury

Tribune News Service

Kolkata, September 18

Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Bangladeshi counterpart Sheikh Hasina on Tuesday jointly inaugurated the construction of a friendship pipeline and two railway projects through video conferencing.

The 130-km India-Bangladesh Friendship Pipeline Project will connect Siliguri in West Bengal and Parbatipur in Dinajpur district of Bangladesh. The Rs 364-crore project will be completed in 30 months and the capacity of the pipeline will be 1 million metric tons per annum.

This will be the first such pipeline through which diesel will be supplied to Bangladesh. Initially, Bangladesh will receive 2.5 lakh tonnes of diesel per annum and gradually, the supply will be increased to 4 lakh tonnes.

The two countries had entered into an agreement for the pipeline construction in April this year during Foreign Secretary Vijay Gokhale’s visit to Dhaka.

Speaking on the occasion, Modi described the cooperation between the two neighbours as an example for the world. He said the proposed pipeline would energise, not just Bangladesh’s economy, but also the relationship between the two countries.

Besides the pipeline, the two leaders also inaugurated the construction of the third and fourth dual-gauge rail lines in the Dhaka-Tongi section and the dual-gauge rail line in the Tongi-Joydebpur section of Bangladesh Railway.

Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina said she would expect continued support from India for developing Bangladesh. “I look forward to continued support from the government of India in our development pursuit. I’m quite sure we’ll get such many happy events in the days ahead for the welfare of our people,” she said.

Friendship pipeline
130-km pipeline will link Siliguri to Parbatipur
Rs 364-cr project will complete in 30 months
1 million metric tons per annum is the capacity

For Diesel supply

This will be the first pipeline through which diesel will be supplied to Bangladesh. Initially, Dakha will receive 2.5 lakh tonnes of diesel a year and later, the supply will be raised to 4 lakh tonnes.