With India and Bangladesh signing two MoUs on Tuesday the Indian Railways would train Bangladesh Railway’s staff members and provide IT solutions for the computerisation of its passenger ticketing and freight operations.

The memorandum of understanding (MoU) signed between the Ministry of Railways (Railway Board), Government of India and the Ministry of Railways, Government of Bangladesh on training Bangladesh Railway personnel in India envisages a framework of cooperation and to facilitate the training at the institutes of the Indian Railways.

This will include conducting seminars, workshops, classroom and field trainings. The Indian Railways will also coordinate with officials in the neighbouring country as required, including for visiting and assisting in setting up and improving training facilities in Bangladesh and study requirements, officials said.

The other MoU is on “Collaboration in IT systems such as FOIS and other IT applications for Bangladesh Railway”.

This will include information technology solutions for all aspects of the Bangladesh Railway — computerisation of passenger ticketing, freight operation and control office, train inquiry system, digitisation of asset management, human resource and finance infrastructure  through the Centre for Railway Information Systems (CRIS).

The two countries also inaugurated the 5.13-km Rupsha rail bridge, which is a key part of the 64.7-km Khulna-Mongla Port single-track broad gauge rail project, connecting Mongla Port with

Khulna by rail for the first time, and thereafter, to central and north Bangladesh and also to the country’s border with India at Petrapole and Gede in West Bengal.

“The inauguration of the railway bridge over the Rupsha river is a remarkable step towards enhancing connectivity. This bridge is an important part of the new railway line being built between Khulna and thereby augmenting the rail connections between the two countries, especially to Dhaka, but also in future, to Mongla Port.

Another project, Parbatipur-Kaunia railway line, will see the conversion of the existing metre-gauge line to dual-gauge line at an estimated cost of USD 120.41 million. The project will connect to the existing cross-border rail at Birol (Bangladesh)-Radhikapur (West Bengal) and enhance bilateral rail connectivity.