A three-day Inter-Governmental Railway Meeting in Dhaka will consider resuming three cross-border passenger services suspended in August 2024, while freight operations have continued without interruption.
A three-day IGRM meeting in Dhaka will decide whether and when the Maitree, Bandhan and Mitali passenger trains resume service.
Decisions will cover operational, administrative and financial issues typically handled by the IGRM, including accounting, rolling stock and infrastructure matters.
India and Bangladesh opened a three-day Inter-Governmental Railway Meeting (IGRM) in Dhaka to discuss restarting passenger train services that were suspended in August 2024. The IGRM is the established bilateral mechanism for railway cooperation and will address operational and administrative issues tied to cross-border services.
Three named passenger trains remain suspended: the Maitree Express (Dhaka Cantonment–Chitpur, Kolkata), the Bandhan Express (Khulna–Kolkata), and the Mitali Express (Dhaka Cantonment–New Jalpaiguri). Officials say freight trains continued to operate without disruption during the suspension.
Member (Traffic) of the Railway Board. Bangladesh Railway and ministry officials represent Dhaka. Bangladesh Railway's Additional Director General (Operations), Mohammad Nazmul Islam, spoke publicly about the situation and confirmed freight continuity. Final decisions on resumption and timelines will be taken during the IGRM.
Passenger services were halted amid widespread civil unrest in Bangladesh in July 2024. That unrest resulted in the resignation and departure of then-Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina in August 2024 and broader political disruption. An interim administration then took charge in Dhaka. Those events strained bilateral relations between New Delhi and Dhaka, affecting cross-border passenger rail.
Political developments since the suspension
A general election on 22 February 2026 brought a government led by the Bangladesh Nationalist Party and Prime Minister Tarique Rahman. Following that political transition, bilateral ties began to normalise. India resumed issuing tourist visas for Bangladeshi nationals on 27 June 2026, increasing public demand for restoring passenger trains.
The IGRM typically examines a range of railway issues that are relevant to any restart: financial settlements and dues between the two countries, accounting of cross-border train movements, annual balancing of accounts, operational efficiency, rolling stock allocation and management, and infrastructure needs. The meeting will consider which passenger services can resume and set timelines based on operational readiness and agreements reached during the talks.
Restoring the three passenger services is framed as a priority in the current talks because passenger trains ease travel, support tourism, and provide a direct people-to-people link. Officials and the travelling public have signalled strong demand for resumption since visa issuance resumed.
The process of restarting the Maitree, Mitali and Bandhan Express trains operating between India and Bangladesh will be on the agenda at the meeting this time.
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