Bangladesh is set to receive 18 broad-gauge railway coaches manufactured in India, with the first consignment due to arrive through the Darshana border on Friday…reports Asian Lite News Desk
Bangladesh is set to receive 18 modern broad-gauge railway coaches from India on Friday, with the first consignment expected to enter the country through Darshana International Railway Station in Chuadanga district. The delivery is part of a wider procurement programme to modernise Bangladesh Railway’s passenger services.
The coaches, supplied under an agreement between Bangladesh Railway and India’s Rail India Technical and Economic Service (RITES), are expected to arrive on Friday afternoon. After customs clearance, they will be transported to the Saidpur Railway Workshop for inspection and technical assessment.
Mamunur Rashid, station manager of Darshana International Railway Station, said the coaches were manufactured in Kapurthala, in the Indian state of Punjab, and dispatched to Bangladesh on October 12, according to Bangladeshi newspaper Dhaka Tribune.
The consignment comprises three air-conditioned sleeper coaches, three air-conditioned chair cars, 11 non-air-conditioned chair cars and one power car.
At the Saidpur Railway Workshop, the coaches will undergo mandatory inspections and technical assessments before preparations are made to introduce them into passenger train services, Rashid said.
RITES announced the dispatch earlier this week in a post on social media platform X.
“Made in India. Moving the World. The 1st rake of 18 passenger coaches for Bangladesh Railway has been dispatched from RCF Kapurthala, marking another feat in RITES’ export journey. From manufacturing excellence to cross-border connectivity, we’re Shaping What Shapes Lives.”
The delivery follows the resumption of Indian passenger coach supplies to Bangladesh in August, after a gap of nearly a decade. At the time, the first batch of 19 new-generation broad-gauge passenger coaches crossed the Darshana border, according to local media reports.
Those coaches were also manufactured at the Rail Coach Factory (RCF) in Kapurthala and represented the first delivery under Bangladesh Railway’s plan to procure 200 modern passenger coaches.
The programme is intended to improve the efficiency and reliability of railway services in Bangladesh’s southwestern region, particularly routes operating through the Padma Rail Bridge, according to a report by Bangladeshi newspaper Daily Sun.
The procurement initiative was launched in 2022, with the purchase of 200 broad-gauge passenger coaches estimated to cost Tk 1,704.66 crore. Around Tk 1,331 crore of the project funding is expected to come through a loan from the European Investment Bank (EIB).
The latest consignment marks another stage in the delivery programme, as Bangladesh continues preparations to expand and modernise its passenger railway fleet. The coaches will need to complete inspections and technical assessments before entering regular service.
The cooperation between Bangladesh Railway and RITES forms part of ongoing cross-border railway supply arrangements, with the coaches manufactured in India intended to support passenger transport in Bangladesh.
