New Delhi [India], September 29 : Union Railways Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw on Monday highlighted the scope and importance of the India-Bhutan rail connectivity project, describing it as central to Bhutan's economic growth and global access.
"This project is basically connecting two very important cities of Bhutan. One is Gelephu, which is being developed as a mindfulness city. And secondly, Samtse, which is an industrial city," Vaishnaw said.
He explained the project structure, noting, "The two projects will take off from the network of Indian Railways at Kokrajhar and Banarhat. The investment which is envisaged at this point in time is about Rs 4033 crore, and the total length is about 90 kilometres to be precise. 89 kilometres of railway network will be created."
Highlighting trade linkages, Vaishnaw added, "India is the largest trading partner of Bhutan and most of the exempt trade of Bhutan is done through Indian ports. Therefore, it becomes very important to have a good seamless rail connectivity for the Bhutanese economy to grow and for the people to have better access to the global network. That's why this entire project has been undertaken..."
Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri, also addressing the briefing, underlined the bilateral significance of the new rail links.
"...These links that are being worked on will be critical for enhancing cargo and passenger movement. So it is in the context of this very special relationship that the two governments have agreed to establish two cross-border rail links between Banarhat and Samtse and Kokrajhar and Gelephu. This will be the first set of rail connectivity projects with Bhutan," Misri said.
He recalled the agreements that paved the way for the projects. "The memorandum of understanding for this connectivity was actually signed during the visit of the Prime Minister to Bhutan that I mentioned a short while ago, the one that took place last year. And this MoU will be formally signed later today in New Delhi on the occasion of the visit of the Bhutanese Foreign Secretary to New Delhi."
The joint press conference was addressed by Union Railways Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw and Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri in Delhi on the launch of new railway projects between India and Bhutan.
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