The railway network of Bangladesh is set to see a major development next month, as the newly-constructed Khulna-Mongla track will be inaugurated on November 1. Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi will officially inaugurate this railway line virtually, Ahmed Hossain Masum, chief engineer of the project, told media. Read: Kaptai hanging bridge in Rangamati opens to tourists after over one month Before the official opening, a trial train will go from Khulna’s Phultala to Mongla this afternoon, he added. Some final works will be completed soon, said the chief engineer. Rafiqul Haque, assistant engineer of the project said, local people living on both sides of the rail line were informed on Sunday about the trial train movement today (October 30, 2023). Read: Chinese-built railway opens via Bangladesh's Padma Bridge The project was approved at a meeting of the Executive Committee of the National Economic Council (ECNEC) on December 21, 2010. Work began in November, 2016.

Maritime ports of Chattogram, Cox’s Bazar, Mongla and Payra have been advised to lower the cautionary signal raised due to Cyclone Hamoon. Read : 1 dies as Cyclone Hamoon batters Cox's Bazar, Chattogram Squally weather is unlikely over the maritime ports, north Bay and adjoining coastal areas of Bangladesh, said a latest bulletin of the Met office. Read : Body recovered from Marine Drive road in Cox's Bazar All fishing boats and trawlers over the North Bay and adjoining  area have been advised to proceed with caution till this evening. Read : Railway Minister to inspect Dohazari-Cox's Bazar line before inauguration The cyclonic storm ‘Hamoon’, over northeast Bay and adjoining area, moved northwestward and crossed the coast at 1 am today, weakening into a land deep depression near Satkania in Chattogram, said a latest bulletin of the Met office.

Maritime ports of Chattogram, Cox’s Bazar, Mongla and Payra have been advised to keep local cautionary signal no. 3 hoisted as the monsoon depression over India’s West Bengal-Bihar and adjoining area moved west-northwestwards and now lies over north Chhattisgarh and adjoining area. It is likely to move in a west-northwesterly direction further and weaken gradually into a well-marked low, said a special bulletin of the Met office on Thursday (August 03, 2023). Maritime ports asked to hoist cautionary signal 3 Under its influence steep pressure gradient persists over north Bay and adjoining coastal areas of Bangladesh. Squally weather is likely to continue over north Bay and adjoining coastal areas of Bangladesh. Maritime ports asked to hoist cautionary signal 3 All fishing boats and trawlers in the north Bay have been advised to remain close to the coast and proceed with caution till further notice. Maritime ports advised to lower signal

A ship carrying 26,620 mts of coal for the Rampal Thermal Power Plant in Bagerhat arrived here from Indonesia. Chinese flag-carrying ‘MV Zhe Hai-526’ship arrived here at Harbaria of the Mongla port early Saturday (June 10, 2023). Also Read: Rampal electricity cost nearly doubles due to high coal price, increased dollar rate The unloading of the coal from the vessel started around 9:40 am and it is being deposited to the jetty of Rampal Power Plant through a lighterage vessel. Assistant manager of Shipping Agent Togi Shipping and Logistic Ltd, Khulna, Khandaker Riazul Haque, said the ship carrying the coal left for Mongla on May 27 and anchored at Harbaria-11 in Pashur Channel around 5 am. Also Read: Dollar crisis casts a shadow over operation of Rampal coal-fired power plant The coal will be taken to a coal shed through an automated belt, said Riazul. On May 16, a total of 30,000 metric tonnes and 30,500 metric tonnes of coal arrived at Mongla port by MV Bashundhara Impress and MV Basundhara Majesty, on May 16 and May 29, respectively. Also Read: Transmission from Adani’s Gadda power plant to national grid resumes

India will have to pay a fee (transhipment fee, security and administrative charge) of Tk 220 per tonne for the transportation of goods to the north-eastern states through the use of Mongla and Chittagong ports. Apart from this, document processing fee of Tk 30 per consignment, container scanning fee of Tk 254 and escort charge of Tk 85 per kilometre have to be paid. Goods during transit cannot be transported on other routes beyond the specified route as per the agreement, the National Board of Revenue (NBR) said in a notification on Monday. The National Board of Revenue (NBR) issued a standing order regarding transit-transhipment of Indian goods under the agreement on the use of Chittagong and Mongla ports for the movement of goods to and from India. The transit fee-route has been fixed by Standard Operating Procedure (SOP). According to the standing order, C&F agents have to apply to Mongla and Chittagong Customs for registration as transit operators. After the application verification, if the results are satisfactory, the eligible C&F agents will have to submit a Tk 10,000 (non-refundable) treasury challan, an unconditional bank guarantee of Tk 10 lakh and a risk bond of Tk 50 lakh. If the transit-transhipment goods fail to cross the geographical border of Bangladesh within seven days, the operator will have to pay the duty-tax penalty for the goods. If the goods fail to reach the destination due to natural causes or the vehicle breaks down, a letter should be sent to the concerned VAT Commissionerate office giving details, the NBR notification said. Read more: NBR counting losses for rampant tax evasion The order further states that scanning of every transit-transhipment challan will be done. Then the electronic seal lock will be installed. A manual inspection of the goods will be carried out if discrepancies are found in the scanning. In July 2020, the first trial run under the agreement was carried out with four containers loaded with iron rods and pulses transported from Haldia port in Kolkata to the Chittagong seaport. The fourth and final trial run to connect Chittagong and Mongla ports to the north-eastern states via India-Bangladesh Protocol Route concluded on 7 November, 2022. Bangladesh State Minister for Shipping Khalid Mahmud Chowdhury recently told reporters that Indi wants to use Mongla and Chittagong ports as an alternative to Singapore and Colombo ports. The neighbouring country is keen for regular transit as its vehicles need to travel over 1,650 kilometres for transporting goods from Kolkata to Agartala through Guwahati. It is expected that the move will help increase trade volume to the northeast on inland waterways via the India-Bangladesh Protocol route and help reduce the cost of freight. Until now, India used to take a lot of time to transport goods to the eastern states. Transporting through these two ports of Bangladesh will reduce both time and cost for India. Read more: NBR supports Made in Bangladesh brand: Chairman

Khulna-Mongla rail line project, which missed several completion deadlines, is now expected to be opened in July this year, according to project authorities. “96 percent of the construction of the 64.75-km railway line from Khulna to Mongla was completed in  December last year. More progress has been made in the last few months. The work of the entire project is expected to be completed by June this year. In July, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina will inaugurate the railway line,” said project director Md Arifuzzaman. With the opening of the rail line, Mongla, the country's second largest seaport, will be brought under rail connectivity after 73 years of its establishment. It is expected to expedite the economic activities of the Mongla sea port. Mongla Port was established on December 1, 1950 in Bagerhat district in the southwestern part of the country. The port is located at the confluence of the Pashur River and the Mongla River, 48 kilometers south of Khulna city. According to project officials, the railway link between Khulna and the Mongla sea port is the need of the hour for transportation of goods. In order to ensure the ease of doing business, the government embarked on the railway project worth Tk 3,800 crore some seven years ago. The project work began in November 2016. Initially, the project was scheduled to be completed within May, 2020. Unfortunately, the project has experienced both time and cost overruns. With the opening of the rail service, trade and commerce with India, Nepal and Bhutan will be expanded. Due to the absence of a railway, there was a problem in transporting large containers of the port so far, said businessmen who use the port. Also Read: Khulna-Mongla rail link to be operational by December? The Khulna-Mongla railway project was approved at a meeting of the Executive Committee of the National Economic Council (ECNEC) on December 21, 2010 but it work started in 2016. The project  is being implemented in three parts. Among them, package-1 rail line construction, package-2 rail bridge over Rupsa River and package-3 telecommunication and signaling system, said project officials. Under these projects, the length of the railway track, including the main line, is 86.87km. Of these, 64.75km is broad gauge railway. A 5.13-km rail bridge has been constructed on the Rupsha River. Around cent percent of the work on the bridge has already been completed. In addition, work on 31 small bridges has been completed. Of the 107 culverts, 105 have been completed. Construction of nine VUP's and 26 of the 29 LC gates have been completed, they said. Mongla Port Authority Chairman Rear Admiral Mir Ershad Ali said once the project is implemented, there will be a radical changes in the trade and commerce and communication in the southern district. “After the establishment of Mongla port, there was no rail connectivity with the port. Now with the opening of Khulna-Mongla railway line, the pressure of transporting goods by road will be reduced. At the same time, the cost and time of transportation of goods will be reduced,” he said. “Besides, multiple communication system will be established in the port. As a result, trade with India, Nepal and Bhutan will be easier,” he added.    

A ship carrying material for Bangabandhu Rail Bridge arrived at Mongla Port, authorities said on Saturday. The Panama flag carrier, ‘MV Ever Champion’, carrying 1411 metric tonnes of material for the bridge arrived at the No. 8 jetty of the port around 11 am. Earlier, on March 7, another ship carrying material for Bangabandhu Rail Bridge arrived at Mongla Port from Vietnam. Shawkat Ali, operation manager of local shipping agent Haque and Sons Limited, said the ship anchored at Mongla Port in the morning and the work to unload the goods is underway. The materials will be sent to the Bangabandhu Bridge Railway Authority within two days. It is the 6th shipment carrying material for Bangabandhu Rail Bridge to arrive at the port. On March 5, a ship named ‘Hidong-9’ carrying 1556 metric tonnes of machineries of the bridge arrived at Mongla port. Also read: Group demands govt scrap Jamuna river ‘narrowing’ project On November 29 2020, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina laid the foundation stone of a 4.8km double-line dual-gauge Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Railway Bridge aimed at boosting rail communication between the capital and western zones of Bangladesh Railway. The main bridge will be constructed in two phases. Two separate agreements have already been signed with Obayashi-TOA-JFE, Japan and IHI-SMCC JV, Japan for eastern and western parts of civil works respectively.  

Weather may remain dry with temporary partly cloudy skies across the country, Bangladesh Meteorological Department (BMD) said this morning (February 12, 2023). Moderate to thick fog may occur at places over the river basins and light to moderate fog may occur elsewhere over the country -- from late night till tomorrow morning, said the regular bulletin of BMD. Dhaka's air 4th most polluted in the world this morning Night and day temperature may fall slightly over the country. The lowest temperature in the country was recorded at 12.8 degrees Celsius in Srimangal in the 24 hours till 6 am today. The highest temperature was recorded at 32.2 degrees Celsius in Mongla and Cox’s Bazar. Read More: Study: 15 million people live under threat of glacial floods

Mongla Port Authority and EGIS India Consulting Engineers Pvt. Ltd on Monday signed the project management consultancy services contract for the ‘upgradation of Mongla Port’ project. The project is being financed under the Government of India’s concessional line of credit of USD 4.5 billion extended to the Government of Bangladesh.  The total project cost under India’s concessional line of credit is USD 530 million of which the PMC contract awarded to EGIS India Consulting Engineers Ltd. is for USD 9.60 million. State Minister for Shipping Khalid Mahmud Chowdhury MP, was the chief guest at the signing ceremony.  High Commissioner of India to Bangladesh Pranay Verma and Secretary, Ministry of Shipping, Md. Mostafa Kamal, attended the event as special guests.  High Commissioner Verma highlighted that Bangladesh is India’s largest development partner, both in terms of value and number of projects.  Nearly one fourth of India’s global development assistance is extended to various projects in Bangladesh, covering a variety of sectors, he said.  Also Read: Transit: Regular movement of Indian goods using Ctg, Mongla ports at final stage "This robust development cooperation is a reflection of India’s commitment to partnering with Bangladesh in its journey towards greater growth and prosperity," said the Indian envoy. He emphasised that various connectivity projects like the Mongla Port project, once completed, would have a transformational impact on not only India-Bangladesh economic relations but also on the economy of the entire sub-region.  The government of India has extended four concessional lines of credit to the Government of Bangladesh till date, worth USD 7.862 billion.  Under the concessional loans, 42 projects have been taken up so far, according to the Indian High Commission in Dhaka.  Of these, 14 projects have already been completed and the remaining are in various stages of implementation.  Over USD 2 billion worth of projects have been contracted and actual disbursements have crossed  USD 1 billion, significantly picking up pace despite the severe challenges presented by the pandemic.  The ‘Upgradation of Mongla Port’ project is the largest project in the shipping/ports sector which Government of India is financing under its concessional loans.  Also Read: Constructing ferry ghat, road in Mongla port area may put 2 LPG plant operations at risk The development of this port will strengthen maritime connectivity for Bangladesh, not just for the movement of goods with India but also with Bhutan and Nepal.  India is also providing concessional financing for the Khulna-Mongla Port rail line project and the Khulna-Darsana rail line project and with the completion of these projects, Mongla Port would become the only port in Bangladesh with rail connectivity, making it a truly multi-modal hub and unlocking immense economic potential.   

Rail communications between Chilahati-Mongla will be inaugurated by June 2023, according to Railway Minister Md Nurul Islam Sujon. “People from India, Bangladesh, Nepal, and Bhutan can easily travel or carry their goods from Mongla port to Chilahati. The development work of the rail route is going on and I hope it will be completed by June,” he said. The railway minister came up with the information while visiting the Chilahati Station and Chilahati-Haldibari Railway Development project, involving Tk 140 crore, in Domar upazila of Nilphamari district. Chilahati-Haldibari railway services have remained under suspension since 1965 but after assuming power, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has taken a plan to resume the rail services, he said. Already an inter-city train from Chilahati-Dhaka is running in the night but the residents of the Nilphamari district have long been demanding for a day-time train there, he added. The minister also assured of meeting the demand. Read more: Jatri Kalyan Samity demand 50% cut in metro rail fare