New Delhi, India (BBN)-India and Bangladesh have decided to speed up the plan to run a weekly train service between Khulna and Kolkata in the wake of popular demand.
"Both sides agreed to expeditiously evaluate the feasibility of initially operating this once a week via the longer Gede - Darsana route," said a statement issued after India - Bangladesh inter-governmental railway meeting.
It comes ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's scheduled visit to Dhaka early next month.
Responding to India's request of permission to being allowed access Bangladesh rail network for carrying traffic to and from eastern states, Bangladesh Railway agreed to place the proposal for consideration at the appropriate levels of its government.
Indian Railways reiterated the need for immediate introduction of container train services between India and Bangladesh which would help in optimizing the level of trans-border clearance of goods and in bringing down the overall transaction cost for trade.
Both railways also agreed to start transportation of petroleum products from Numaligarh refinery in Assam to Parbatipur in Bangladesh via the existing interchange points at Rohanpur and Singhabad.