BBIN motor vehicle pact to be signed in Thimphu on Monday

The much-hyped Bangladesh-Bhutan-India-Nepal (BBIN) motor vehicle pact will be signed in the Bhutanese capital Thimphu on Monday.

India’s Transport Minister Nitin Gadkari is likely to reach Thimphu late Sunday night.

The BBIN Motor Vehicles Agreement will facilitate the transportation of both people and goods among the four SAARC member countries.

India’s cabinet had on Wednesday approved the signing of the pact, a long-pending issue of these four countries.

There transport ministers will sign the agreement in the Bhutanese capital.

Interestingly, SAARC Motor Vehicle Agreement was approved during the SAARC summit in Kathmandu in November 2014. However, it could not be signed because of reservations expressed by Pakistan.

The SAARC declaration at the Kathmandu summit encouraged member states to initiate regional and sub-regional measures to enhance such connectivity.

Hence, it was considered appropriate to pursue a sub-regional Motor Vehicle Agreement among BBIN.

Subsequently, a meeting of BBIN transport secretaries was organised by the ministry of road transport and highways in Delhi in February to discuss and finalize the text of the draft agreement.

The signing of the BBIN agreement will promote safe, economical, efficient and environmentally sound road transport in the sub-region and help each country in creating an institutional mechanism for regional integration.

According to the agreement, each country will bear its own cost arising from the implementation of the agreement.