Dibrugarh: The Bogibeel Terminal in Dibrugarh has dispatched its first international cargo to Bangladesh since India’s independence, with a barge carrying 540 metric tonnes of methanol bound for Dhaka.
Union Minister for Ports, Shipping and Waterways Sarbananda Sonowal flagged off the vessel DLB Patkai, pushed by the tug Kushal Konwar, from the Bogibeel Terminal. Assam Chief Minister Dr Himanta Biswa Sarma joined the ceremony virtually.
The shipment, described as the first cargo sent from Upper Assam to a foreign port since 1947, marks a major revival of Dibrugarh’s river trade nearly 70 years after its historic river ghat ceased operations.
The methanol, produced by state-owned Assam Petro-Chemicals Ltd. (APCL) at Namrup, is destined for Pangaon Port in Dhaka, Bangladesh.
From the Bogibeel Terminal, the vessel will travel around 768 kilometres downstream on National Waterway-2 (NW-2) along the Brahmaputra River to the Indo-Bangladesh border before continuing through the Indo-Bangladesh Protocol Route (IBPR).
The vessel will cover a total distance of 1,300 kilometres from Bogibeel in Dibrugarh to Narayanganj in Dhaka.
Bogibeel Terminal Voyage Tests Brahmaputra as Freight Corridor
The voyage from the Bogibeel Terminal is being viewed as a test of the Brahmaputra’s potential as a commercially viable freight corridor connecting India’s Northeast with overseas markets.
Regular methanol shipments to Bangladesh are planned. The movement has been enabled by the recent establishment of customs and immigration complexes at Bogibeel and Dhubri.
“Our grandparents grew up hearing the steamer whistle at Dibrugarh Ghat. For 70 years, that whistle fell silent and the ships stopped coming,” Sonowal said.
“Today, a ship leaves Dibrugarh for the world once again. The river never failed us. What it lacked for decades was the will to revive it.”
Sarma described the occasion as a proud day for Assam.
“Assam’s own product, made in Namrup, is now traveling to an international market on Assam’s own river, The Northeast is no longer a frontier. It is India’s gateway to the East.” he said.
Sonowal said the voyage marks the beginning of a broader revival of river-based trade from Assam.
“This is the first voyage, not the last,” he said. “To the youth of Assam I say: Dream with this river. The world is no longer far away. It is downstream.
Under Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Dibrugarh, the Tea Capital of India, is reclaiming the glory it once had as a great river port. We are building it with world-class infrastructure while honouring its heritage. The steamer whistle that fell silent in 1956 is heard again,” Sonowal exclaimed.
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Dibrugarh’s Historic River Trade
Dibrugarh was once among the busiest river ports in eastern India. Government steamers reached the town from Calcutta, now Kolkata, by 1856. In 1882, the Dibru-Sadiya Railway began operating from the Dibrugarh steamer ghat.
By 1913, steamers were sailing daily up the Brahmaputra to Dibrugarh, carrying tea, timber and passengers.
The 1947 Partition disrupted the route, forcing Assam’s goods to pass through East Pakistan to reach Calcutta. A 1950 earthquake altered the riverbed at Dibrugarh.
Regular bookings from Dibrugarh Ghat stopped in 1954, and the ghat closed on October 15, 1956, as tea shipments shifted to rail.
The 1965 India-Pakistan war further suspended cross-border river trade. India and Bangladesh signed a river trade protocol in 1972.
In 1988, the 891-kilometre stretch of the Brahmaputra from Sadiya to Dhubri was declared National Waterway-2. However, regular cargo service on the waterway did not begin until December 2017, when cement was transported from Pandu to Dhubri.
Bogibeel Terminal Part of River Trade Revival
“For decades, that glory was allowed to fade. Under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, we set out to give Dibrugarh back its rightful place.
The Bogibeel terminal, the customs and immigration complex and fixed-schedule cargo services under ‘Jalvahak’ are giving this historic town modern amenities and world-class infrastructure. We are building for the future while reinstating the heritage that made Dibrugarh great.
Today, as cargo leaves Dibrugarh for a foreign port once again, the town’s proud past and its promising future meet on the same river,” Sonowal added.
Activity along the route has increased in recent years. Tata Steel barges reached Pandu through Bangladesh in February 2022, while the river cruise ship MV Ganga Vilas sailed from Varanasi to Dibrugarh through Bangladesh in 2023.
The Bogibeel Terminal, a passenger and cargo terminal whose foundation stone was laid in July 2023, opened in February 2024. The ‘Jalvahak’ cargo incentive programme was launched in December 2024.
According to the Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways (MoPSW), cargo movement on India’s national waterways increased from 18 million metric tonnes in fiscal 2013-14 to 218 million metric tonnes in 2025-26.
More than ₹68 billion (about $770 million) is being invested in waterways across the Northeast, including the development of National Waterway-2, a ship repair facility at Pandu and last-mile connectivity to Pandu Port.
“Every ton we move on the river means less fuel burnt and fewer trucks on the highway,” Sonowal said. He added that India is working with Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan and Myanmar on regional waterway links.
Agencies Involved in Bogibeel Cargo Movement
The voyage from the Bogibeel Terminal involved the Inland Waterways Authority of India (IWAI), Assam Petro-Chemicals, Cochin Bunkers Pvt. Ltd. and partners in Bangladesh.
