Railway coach supply to Bangladesh resumes a decade later

Indian Railways will once again start supplying passenger coaches to Bangladesh Wednesday. The Rail Coach Factory (Kapurthala), will rollout a 19 passenger coach rake for Bangladesh Railway Wednesday. An official statement said this comprises three AC Sleeper Cars, three AC Chair Cars, 11 Non-AC Chair Cars and two Power Cars.

This is also the first rake export to Bangladesh after the regime change which saw the ouster of former prime minister Sheikh Hasina. India had earlier supplied 120 broad gauge (BG) Passenger Coaches in 2015-16.

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RITES Limited, the export arm of Indian Railways, is currently executing this contract to supply 200 Broad Gauge passenger coaches to Bangladesh Railway. European Investment Bank is funding this Rs 915 crore project which was awarded to RITES in May 2024 through a global competitive bidding process.

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A major technological feature is the incorporation of crashworthy design provisions complying with European Standard EN 15227. This required a comprehensive redesign of the car body shell to enhance collision performance and passenger safety. The electrical system of these coaches has also been specially designed for 415 V operation, as against the conventional 750 V system used in Indian Railways coaches, the statement added.