India, Bangladesh to open new trade connectivity route on September 3

India and Bangladesh have decided to open a new trade route from September 3, 2020, to promote regional connectivity by expanding the scope of inland water transport mechanisms that will enable trade boost in the region.

On September 3, a Bangladeshi vessel will transport a cargo of cement to Tripura as part of the efforts to boost connectivity between the two countries. The vessel will be carrying 50 metric tonnes of cement from Premier Cement Ltd. of Bangladesh.

The route which will be connecting Sonamura in Tripura to Daudkandi in Bangladesh has been operationalized under the agreement signed by the two countries in May 2020 to boost riverine trade.

Key Highlights:

• The new route between India and Bangladesh will facilitate bilateral trade with improved reliability and cost-effectiveness for the business community.

• The agreement signed between India and Bangladesh in May 2020 was to boost trade by adding two new routes and five more ports for improving the connectivity to India’s north-eastern states and to reduce the transportation costs.

• As per the discussions between Bangladesh Inland Water Transport Authority and Inland Water Authority of India, the first movement will be on 93 km Daudkandi-Sonamura route.

• Customs formalities for the pilot movement will be completed at the land customs station at Srimantapur-Bibirbazar.

Trade relations between India and Bangladesh:

India and Bangladesh had in 1972 signed the Protocol for Inland Water Trade and Transit for the inland waterways connectivity between the two countries for the bilateral trade and for improving connectivity to India North-eastern states.

The protocol was further expanded with a signing of the second addendum on May 20, 2020, that further added two new routes and five ports of call, taking the total number ports of call to 11 and routes to 10.

During the fiscal years 2019-20, around 3.5 million tonnes of cargo was transported through inland waterways.

As per the official, the connectivity provided by the existing and the new routes is more essential amid the COVID-19 pandemic as it will be key to faster, economical, greener, and safer transportation for the business communities of both the countries.