AGARTALA: Over 88 per cent of work on the Agartala-Akhaura international railway connectivity project is over and the remaining work is expected to be finished in the next five-six months.

This was informed by Tripura Transport Minister Sushanta Chowdhury in Agartala.

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The 15-kilometre-long railway line would link Bangladesh’s Akhaura through an international immigration station at Nischintapur along the India-Bangladesh border.

With the completion of the project, the travel time between Agartala and Kolkata via Dhaka would reduce from 31 hours to 10 hours.

The project was supposed to be over in 2020 but was delayed following land acquisition issues and the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic.

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Also read: Tripura-Bangladesh trade expected to start within next 6 months

Speaking to reporters on the sidelines of a visit to the Pushpabanta Palace, which is being converted into a museum, Chowdhury said he recently visited Charipara in West Tripura to oversee the railway project.

As per the agreement between India and Bangladesh, two companies are executing the work along the stretch – IRCON, a public sector enterprise under the Indian Railways, on the Indian side, and Texmaco Rail and Engineering Limited on the Bangladesh side.

Akhaura used to be the railway link for Agartala before Independence.

In 2013, India and Bangladesh signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to revive the railway link.

In addition to the Agartala-Akhaura railway line, Tripura has a few more international connectivity projects linking it with Bangladesh –such as the Indo-Bangla Maitri Bridge in South Tripura, and the inland waterways transport project in the Sepahijala district.

A second Integrated Check Post (ICP) with Bangladesh is being set up at Sabroom in Tripura.

After all the projects are commissioned, Tripura is expected to gain access to the Chittagong and Mongla ports of Bangladesh, opening up new avenues for trade and commerce.