DHAKA, Sept. 1 (Xinhua) -- Bangladesh Railway (BR) has signed a deal with a Chinese joint-venture firm to procure 125 railway luggage vans for bolstering its goods transportation services.
Under the agreement, the joint venture firm of CNTIC (China National Technical Import and Export Corporation)-RAIL TECO (Jiangsu Railteco Equipment Co, Ltd)-JINXI (Jinxi Railway Vehicle Co Ltd) will supply 50 broad-gauge and 75 meter-gauge luggage vans at a cost of 42.74 million U.S. dollars (3.58 billion taka).
In collaboration with the Asian Development Bank, Bangladesh Railway has already launched the Rolling Stock Operation Improvement Project (Rolling Stock Procurement) to procure the luggage vans.
Bangladeshi Railways Minister Nurul Islam Sujan, among others, was present at the signing ceremony.
According to a project paper of the Bangladesh Railway, the Chinese firm will start supplying the vans within 20 months from the effective date of the contract and will finish the commissioning work within 27 months.
In his speech, Bangladeshi Railway Minister Sujan said the capacity of the country's rail services to transport goods, including perishable items, would improve significantly after commissioning of the vans.
Following Bangladesh's hefty economic growth in recent years, he further said the demand for luggage vans is on the rise largely.
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