Onlykashmir.in News Desk
Indian Railways has completed its first ever direct commercial container freight train run from Kolkata Port to Biratnagar Customs Yard in Nepal, marking a fresh chapter in cross border rail freight movement between the two neighbouring countries.
The 40 wagon train, carrying a consignment of canola, travelled under the revised India Nepal Rail Transit Protocol and reached its destination without requiring transshipment at the border, a procedural change that officials say will meaningfully cut down transit times, logistics costs and cargo handling for future shipments.
The achievement builds on the broad gauge rail link connecting Jogbani in India with Biratnagar in Nepal, a line inaugurated in June 2023 by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the then Prime Minister of Nepal. That infrastructure had laid the physical groundwork, but full commercial rail movement only became operational after the two governments signed a revised Letter of Exchange in November 2025, clearing the procedural path for direct freight services.
Officials describe the milestone as part of a broader effort to deepen India’s international rail connectivity and strengthen freight logistics as a tool of regional economic cooperation. By removing multiple handling points along the route, the new arrangement is expected to improve supply chain efficiency for exporters, importers and logistics operators engaged in trade between the two countries, while also offering a more environmentally sustainable alternative to road transport for bulk cargo.
Indian Railways has framed the development as consistent with the government’s wider push to improve ease of doing business through modern transport infrastructure, arguing that reduced logistics costs and more reliable cargo movement will benefit industries on both sides of the border over time. Nepal, a landlocked country heavily reliant on Indian ports for its overseas trade, stands to gain considerably from faster and cheaper access to Kolkata’s container handling facilities.
The successful operation is being positioned as the first of what officials expect to be a regular service, rather than a one off demonstration run. If sustained, the corridor could become a template for similar direct freight arrangements with other neighbouring countries, as India continues to expand rail based trade corridors as part of its regional connectivity strategy.
Further details on the frequency of future services and the range of commodities expected to move along the corridor are likely to be announced by Indian Railways in the coming weeks as the new protocol is operationalised more broadly.
