Iran drops India from Chabahar rail project  

TEHRAN: The Iranian government has decided to proceed with Iran’s Chabahar Port rail project by itself, four years after it inked a deal with New Delhi.  

According to details, the Iranian government has cited delays from the Indian side in funding and starting the 628km-long project as a reason for dropping India from the project.

An Indian publication informed that the country will now use around $400 million from the Iranian National Development Fund instead of relying on India.

The development comes in the backdrop of China finalising a 25-year strategic partnership deal with Iran worth $400 billion.

The partnership will include Chinese involvement in Chabahar’s duty-free zone, an oil refinery nearby, and possibly a larger role in Chabahar port as well, the report said.  

Last week, the railways’ project witnessed the inauguration of its track-laying process by the Iranian Transport Minister. The project will be completed by March 2022.

The two countries had signed an agreement four years ago to construct the railway line along the Iran-Afghanistan border. It was signed between the Indian Railways Construction Ltd, and the Iranian Railways as part of a trilateral project between India, Iran, and Afghanistan.

Iran’s Chabahar port lies on the Indian Ocean about 100 kilometres (62 miles) west of the Pakistan border.