Tk20cr project to set up railway carriage factory stalls for 7yrs

A project to set up a railway carriage manufacturing factory in Saidpur of Nilphamari with a budget of Tk20 crore, taken seven years ago to come out of import dependence, is gathering dust at the Ministry of Planning.

The government signed an agreement with India in 2016 to set up the carriage factory and the authorities examined the feasibility several times. Then, in 2018, a signboard was placed at a 200-acre plot allotted for the proposed project within the Saidpur Railway Workshop.

Officials concerned, who preferred not to be named, said the government initially earmarked Tk30 crore for the factory. An agreement was also made with India for the remaining funds to be obtained as a loan. 

However, due to the non-disbursement of the allocated funds and the loan, no visible progress has been made on the project without merely installation of the signboard.

The officials said the workshop, once ready, will be able to manufacture on average five carriages every month.

Saidpur Railway Workshop was set up in 1870 as a maintenance shed for meter-gauge steam locomotives centring Assam Bengal Railway of India. In 1953, the necessary machinery and equipment for the maintenance of meter-gauge and broad-gauge coaches and wagons were installed on an 800-acre plot of land. 

According to railway officials, Saidpur Railway Workshop used to manufacture third-class carriages. But the authorities halted the production in 1993 as a part of "railway contraction policy."

The government had to spend $66 million to import 100 broad-gauge coaches and carriages from China for the Padma Bridge Connectivity Project this year. On average, Bangladesh imports 60 coaches per year. As the country incurs significant expenses due to these imports, the authorities initiated plans to establish a new rail coach factory.

*The headline of the article earlier mentioned Tk200cr. This has been corrected to Tk20cr. 

Akhter Hossain Swapan, a director of the Nilphamari Chamber of Commerce and Industry, told The Business Standard, "The Saidpur Railway Workshop is not just a regional asset; it is a national asset. Developing this sector can benefit the entire country. We have skilled workforce, and we can manufacture our own products. If necessary, we can export railway carriages." 

He went on to say, "The world is now moving towards sustainable development, and many are again focusing on manufacturing. Everything is under consideration, and having a railway carriage factory in this region is now very important. If a new coach manufacturing factory is established here, it will further boost business and commerce in this region."

Kudrat E Khuda, the project director and the chief mechanical engineer of the Western Railway, said along with the feasibility study, the detailed design has been transferred from the railways ministry to the planning ministry. "It has been with the Planning Ministry since 2022. Without approval, we cannot proceed with anything," he said.