First post-Independence cargo from Dibrugarh to foreign port departs with Assam methanol

A barge carrying 540 metric tonnes of methanol departed from Bogibeel Terminal in Dibrugarh for Bangladesh on October 5, 2026, marking the first cargo movement from Upper Assam to a foreign port since Independence.

The vessel DLB Patkai, pushed by the tug Kushal Konwar, was flagged off by Union Minister for Ports, Shipping and Waterways Sarbananda Sonowal. Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma joined the ceremony virtually.

The movement comes nearly 70 years after Dibrugarh’s river ghat ceased operations.

Route and cargo

The methanol was produced by state-owned Assam Petro-Chemicals Ltd (APCL) at Namrup and is being transported to Pangaon Port in Dhaka.

The vessel will travel around 768 km along National Waterway-2 (NW-2) on the Brahmaputra to the Indo-Bangladesh border before continuing on the Indo-Bangladesh Protocol Route (IBPR).

An earlier Inland Waterways Authority of India (IWAI) post said the vessel had brought 27 ISO tanks to Bogibeel for loading.

The voyage involves IWAI, APCL, Cochin Bunkers Pvt Ltd and partners in Bangladesh.

Sonowal highlights inland waterway connectivity

Sonowal said the movement marked the return of commercial shipping from Dibrugarh after decades, noting that ships had once regularly used the river route from the town.

He said moving cargo by water can reduce fuel consumption and the number of trucks required on highways. Sonowal also said India is working with Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan and Myanmar to strengthen regional waterway connectivity.

Earlier cross-border river movements

The Dibrugarh-Bangladesh voyage follows other significant river movements through Bangladesh.

Tata Steel barges reached Pandu through Bangladesh in February 2022, while the river cruise vessel MV Ganga Vilas travelled from Varanasi to Dibrugarh through Bangladesh in 2023.

The latest movement adds a commercial cargo service to the growing use of cross-border inland waterways connecting India’s Northeast with Bangladesh and wider regional markets.