KATHMANDU, APR 21 -
Nepal and India have agreed to expedite cross-border rail projects, which will lead to easier and faster connectivity between the two countries.
During the two-day meeting of the Project Steering Committee, which concluded on Friday, the government of India accepted the request of the government of Nepal to construct cross-border railway links at five locations—Jaynagar (India) to Bardibas (Nepal), Jogbani(India) to Biratnagar (Nepal), Nautanwa (India) to Bhairahawa (Nepal), Rupaidiha (India) to Nepalgunj (Nepal), and New Jalpaiguri (India) to Kakarbhitta (Nepal)—on the Indo-Nepal border.
In the meeting, the Nepali delegation was led by Ramesh Raj Bhatta, thejoint secretary at the Ministry of Physical Planning and Works, while the Indian delegation was led by Akhilesh Mishra, joint secretary (North) at the Ministry of External Affairs.
“As part of the meeting, a combined study team comprising authorities from both countries visited Janakpur for on-the-spot assessment of the earmarked area on the Nepalese side for the construction of the Jayanagar-Bardibas rail link. The team took note of the ongoing preparatory work in this regard and suggested ways to accelerate the pace of progress on the rail link,” a press statement released by the Indian Embassy in Kathmandu said.
The team also reviewed the progress made by the two sides for the construction of two rail links—Jogbani-Biratnagar (17.65 km) and Jayanagar-Bardibas (68 km)—under Phase I of the project and laid downa set of practical steps for early implementation of the project.
Work on the conversion of a 51-km railway line from Jaynagar to Bijalpura into broad-gauge and its 17 km extension up to Bardibas is expected to start soon. Both the governments have also decided to undertake work on the 17.65 km Jogbani- Biratnagar rail link in the first phase itself. The estimated cost of the two rail links proposed to be taken up in the first phase is more than NRs 1,100 crores
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