Bangladesh-India passenger train services to resume from May 29

New Delhi: The passenger train service between Bangladesh and India is set to resume from May 29 after remaining suspended for close to 2 years due to the Covid-19 pandemic. The Railway Board has issued instructions to resume the Dhaka- Kolkata Maitree Express and Kolkata-Khulna Bandhan express from May 29.

The Mitali Express Service between New Jalpaiguri-Dhaka will be launched on 01 June from New Jalpaiguri after a virtual launch by the Railway Ministers of India and Bangladesh, said a press release issued by the High Commission of India in Dhaka on Thursday.

The Dhaka- Kolkata Maitree Express will resume services from Dhaka with rakes provided by the Bangladesh railways while the Kolkata-Khulna Bandhan express will resume services from Kolkata with rakes provided by the Indian Railways.

Maitree Express between Dhaka-Kolkata was running five days in a week while Bandhan Express on Khulna-Kolkata route was running twice weekly before the services were suspended in March 2020 after the outbreak of Corona pandemic.

The New Jalpaiguri (NJP)-Dhaka Mitali express was inaugurated in March last year during the visit of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to Bangladesh. However, regular services could not be started due to the Covid-19 pandemic situation.