Akhaura–Agartala line

Akhaura–Agartala line is a railway line between Bangladesh and India. The railway line is a pivotal achievement for both countries. It has several benefits including, boosting tourism in the North East of India, reducing travel time from Kolkata-Agartala from 38 hours to a mere 10 hours by rail, reducing cost of cargo transport to and from Bangladesh and the North East of India, improving bilateral relations and more. It is expected to also act as a gateway to other NE Indian states such as Assam, southern Mizoram and Arunachal Pradesh.

History
The governments of the two countries signed a memorandum of understanding on 21 May 2013 to connect Agartala railway station in India's northeastern state of Tripura and Akhaura Junction railway station in Bangladesh. The total length of the railway line is planned to be 15.054 km, of which only 5 km is on the Indian side and the rest on the Bangladesh side.

Construction of the railway began on 29 July 2018. Construction was supposed to be completed in 2020, but that was not possible due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Its construction period was later pushed back to May 2021. Its deadline were then set for June 2022 and June 2023, respectively. As of April 2023, the work was said to be 88% complete, with the remaining work to be completed in the next 6 months. A trial run was completed in September 2023. The line was inaugurated on 1 November 2023.