Akhaura-Agartala train service to start operation in June 2023: Minister

Railway Minister Nurul Islam Sujan has said that the train service on the Akhaura-Agartala route will commence in June next year.

The minister made the disclosure after inspecting the progress of the railway project work in the Shibnagar area of Akhaura in Brahmanbaria on Sunday (11 December).

The railway minister said that the project is lucrative and prospective for both Bangladesh and neighbouring India.

"Once it is launched, trade between the two countries will also increase. Considering the demand, passenger trains will also run on this route. Gradually, all railways across the country will be transformed into broad gauge," he told the media.

The completion of the Akhaura-Agartala railway project was extended for the fourth time and is expected to end on 30 June 2023. The cost of implementing the project is around Tk241 crores.

Indian contractor Texmeco Rail and Engineering Limited is working on the construction of the railway.

Regarding BNP's anti-government movement, the railway minister alleged that BNP uprooted railway lines and launched arson attacks in the name of political movement.

He then remarked that the destructive nature of BNP's movement mimics the brutality of the Pakistan Army from 1971, and that poses a sense of worry and anxiety over their violence.