Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Bangladesh counterpart Sheikh Hasina today jointly inaugurated the India-Bangladesh Friendship Pipeline Project through video conferencing from New Delhi.
Prime Minister Modi said, the project will boost the friendship between India and Bangladesh. He said, the pipeline will help fulfil energy needs at cheaper rates.
Mr Modi said, Dhaka-Tongi-Joydebpur Railway project will improve connectivity between the two countries and generate more revenue. Mr Modi termed Bangladesh just like a family and said the two projects will further give a boost to people to people ties.
Both countries had entered into an agreement for the pipeline construction in April this year during Foreign Secretary Vijay Gokhale’s visit to Dhaka. The 130-kilometre pipeline will connect Siliguri in West Bengal in India and Parbatipur in Dinajpur district of Bangladesh.
The 346 crore rupees project will be completed in 30 months time. The capacity of the pipeline will be one million metric tons per annum.
The project will replace the existing practice of sending diesel by rail covering a distance of 510 kilometres.