India Developing Rail Links to Connect to Chinese Infrastructure

Oct. 15 – Indian Railways has announced moves to establish rail links with Nepal and Bhutan in moves that will see the Indian rail network come very close to connecting with Chinese rail plans in the region.

China has already commenced plans to link the Qinghai-Lhasa line through to Kathmandu, while reports that China also intends to establish rail links to Pakistan through the Karakorum Highway from Kashgar and also through to Dhaka via Burma from Kunming. India is now working on feasibility studies on six rail links to Nepal and three to Bhutan, in moves that are as aimed at countering Chinese influence in the region as they are to boosting regional trade. Rail connectivity from India to Kathmandu and to Bhutan is relatively straightforward for India as it already possesses a huge national network with lines fairly close to both prospective destinations.

Ultimately, if both Chinese and Indian plans are successful, it would be possible to take a train from Harbin in China’s far North, change at Beijing to get to Lhasa, drop down into Calcutta and then link in with India’s rail network to travel all the way to Chennai in South-East India. Alternatively, it would be possible to travel from Shanghai to Mumbai by train. Another golden age of rail may yet be approaching.