PM Narendra Modi promises timely completion of India-Bhutan railway links

During his Bhutan visit, PM Modi announced a Rs 4,000-crore credit line for Thimphu's energy sector and promised timely completion of two India-Bhutan rail links approved in September

India and Bhutan on Tuesday signed seven agreements, including New Delhi committing to provide ₹4,000 crore worth of concessional line of credit to Thimphu for Bhutan’s energy sector. Prime Minister (PM) Narendra Modi, who is on a two-day visit to the neighbouring country, assured the Bhutanese leadership that he has instructed Indian officials to ensure timely implementation of the two rail projects linking Bhutan and India.

 

In his address at an event at Changlimithang Stadium in Thimphu to mark the 70th birth anniversary of Bhutan’s former king Jigme Singye Wangchuck, Modi said Indian investigating agencies “will get to the bottom” of the conspiracy behind the blast near the Red Fort in New Delhi on Monday evening, and the perpetrators behind it will not be spared. “All those responsible will be brought to justice,” he said.

 

The PM also attended the Global Peace Prayer Festival, where King of Bhutan Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck, led a prayer in the presence of thousands of Bhutanese for the victims of the Delhi blast.

 

Modi and the Bhutanese king jointly inaugurated the 1020 Mw Punatsangchhu-II Hydroelectric Project constructed under a bilateral agreement between the two countries. The PM said it has added 40 per cent of the total installed hydropower capacity of Bhutan. Officials said the two sides have reached an understanding on the power tariff, which would be finalised and announced in due course.

 

The rail links, totalling 89 km, which the Union Cabinet cleared in September, will come up between Assam’s Kokrajhar and Bhutan’s Gelephu, and between West Bengal’s Banarhat and Samtse in Bhutan at a cost of ₹4,033 crore, which India is fully funding. The two projects are part of the first set of rail connectivity projects between the two countries.

 

In his speech, Modi called for energy cooperation and increasing connectivity between the two neighbours. “Connectivity creates opportunity and opportunity creates prosperity. With this goal in mind, a decision has been made to connect the cities of Gelephu and Samtse to India’s vast rail network in the near future,” Modi said, adding that the completion of these projects would provide easier access for the industries in Bhutan and Bhutanese farmers to India’s vast market.

 

Modi said India is also extending all possible support to the vision of Gelephu Mindfulness City, a dream project of King Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck. “In the near future, India will also be building an immigration checkpoint near Gelephu to further facilitate visitors and investors coming here,” he added.

 

India and Bhutan also agreed to establish an immigration check post in Hatisar in Assam’s Chirang district and is located across Gelephu town in Bhutan. Officials said improved road and rail connectivity to Gelephu would help people travel to Gelephu from the Guwahati airport.

 

The PM lauded the Bhutanese leadership’s vision of ‘sustainable development and environment first,’ saying it helped Bhutan become the world’s first carbon-negative country. He said Bhutan generates 100 per cent of its electricity from renewable sources. He added that the two countries were also working to resume another long-stalled hydroelectric project. He said the two countries are looking at taking major steps together in solar energy. Bhutan’s primary export to India is energy.

 

Modi praised the former king, saying he is a confluence of wisdom, simplicity, courage, and selfless service to the nation. Alluding to the former king’s role in evicting ULFA camps from Bhutanese territory, Modi said the former king played a decisive role in establishing democratic systems in Bhutan, establishing peace in border areas and played a significant role in strengthening friendship between India and Bhutan.

 

“The idea of ‘Gross National Happiness’ that you (the former Bhutanese king) introduced has today become an important measure of development across the world. You have shown that nation-building is not only about GDP, but also about the well-being of humanity,” the PM said. Modi said his first trip in 2014 after assuming office of India’s PM was to Bhutan.

 

The PM said India last year announced a contribution of ₹10,000 crore for Bhutan’s Five-Year Plan. “The people of Bhutan desired a Bhutanese temple and guest house in Varanasi. The Indian government is providing the necessary land for this. Through these temples, we are further strengthening our precious and historic cultural ties,” he said. Modi said New Delhi is working to ensure that Bhutanese citizens also have access to a unified payments interface (UPI) when they visit India.