Iran Shocks India Under China's Influence Over Chabahar Port

15 Jul, 2020 14:11 IST|Sakshi Post

The Iranian government has cancelled its rail line project from Chahabar port to Zahedan, along the border with Afganistan, with India saying it has decided to construct on its own, the reason being delays from the Indian side in funding and starting the project.

The move follows as China finalises a 25-year USD 400 billion strategic partnership deal with Iran.

Chabahar port, located in the Sistan-Balochistan province in the energy-rich Iran's southern coast, lies outside the Persian Gulf and is easily accessed from India’s western coast, bypassing Pakistan.

It was last week that Iranian Transport and Urban Development Minister Mohammad Eslami inaugurated the track-laying process for the 628 km Chabahar-Zahedan line, a daily reported.

According to officials talking to the daily, the project will be completed by March 2022. But the Iranian Railways said that it will proceed without India's help and will use USD 400 million from the Iranian Development Fund.

The railway project was between the Iranian Railways and the state-owned Indian Railways Construction Ltd (IRCON). It was meant to be a part of India’s commitment to the trilateral agreement between India, Iran and Afghanistan to build an alternate trade route to Afghanistan and Central Asia.

(With inputs from the Hindu)

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