Bangladesh, India and Nepal are set to sign passenger vehicle protocol by April this year to allow movement of vehicles through these countries under Bangladesh, Bhutan, India and Nepal (BBIN) Motor Vehicles Agreement (MVA).
Almost two years after finalising the draft protocol, the delegates of the three countries at a meeting last week also agreed to make the draft commercial vehicle protocol ready by March.
Sources said the meeting also agreed to complete necessary procedures for the passenger vehicle protocol including approval from the authorities concerned by March and start trial run of passenger vehicles within the three countries during the period between April and June.
"The meeting was successful as all the three countries in principle reached an agreement on major issues," said an official who attended the meeting.
He said trial run of vehicles will start soon after the signing of the protocol during a meeting of the joint land transport facilitation committee headed by road transport secretaries of three countries.
High-level delegates from ministries and agencies concerned of the three member countries of BBIN attended the nodal official-level meeting held in Bengaluru of India on January 10-11. The delegate from Bhutan also attended the meeting as observer.
The BBIN MVA signed in June 2015 was stalled in March 2016 after Bhutan's upper parliament refrained from ratifying the agreement.
However, India initiated the move to resume talks after getting Bhutan's no objection in implementing the agreement among three south Asian countries, keeping the scope for the Himalayan country to join the bloc anytime.
A five-member delegation with representation from the foreign ministry, customs and immigration attended the meeting.
Officials of the Ministry of Road Transport and Bridges who led the meeting from Bangladesh side said trial run of passenger vehicle will help assess the best possible route and remove all obstacles.
"This is not a survey. We have completed the survey during a car rally within the four countries," said an official.
He told the FE that first trial run will be arranged with Nepal as agreed in the meeting as trial run with India has already been completed under BBIN MVA.
He said it has been found that necessary road infrastructures have already been built within the proposed routes of the three countries. India has already built a 37-kilometre Fulbari-Panirtank road, other side of Bangladesh border to go to Nepal, under the SASEC project.
The official also said the meeting agreed to form a subcommittee on customs/immigration to resolve day-to-day problems during trial run.
Referring to drafting the commercial protocol, the official said, each country will draft their own protocol in consultation with inter-agency and private sector and will discuss the issue afterward.
Among the countries, Bangladesh and India completed cargo trial run in 2016 which was, however, supported by both the sides.
The meeting agreed to conduct cargo trial run during normal conditions to assess difficulties within the countries.
Sources said the joint land transport facilitation committee and BBIN customs subgroup will sit in the third and fourth week of April to give a go-ahead for all related developments during the period.
[email protected]
