Union Minister Sarbananda Sonowal flagged off the barge DLB Patkai, laden with 540 metric tons of methanol, from Bogibeel Terminal in Dibrugarh on Monday, October 5, 2026. The tug Kushal Konwar pushed the vessel southward while Chief Minister Dr Himanta Biswa Sarma joined the ceremony via video link, underscoring the state's commitment to reviving its riverine trade.
This voyage is the first international cargo from Assam since India’s independence in 1947, breaking a 70‑year silence after the Dibrugarh ghat shut in 1956. The Brahmaputra, once a bustling artery for tea and timber, now offers a 1,300‑km corridor that could redefine trade between the Northeast and its neighbours.
Methanol was produced by state‑owned Assam Petro‑Chemicals Ltd. at Namrup and is destined for Pangaon Port in Dhaka. The barge will travel 768 kilometres down National Waterway‑2 before crossing the Indo‑Bangladesh Protocol Route, a route that has been cleared of customs and immigration hurdles at Bogibeel and Dhubri.
Sonowal hailed the launch as a historic turning point, crediting Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s focus on infrastructure for enabling the journey. He warned that inland waterways could cut logistics costs and open up markets for farmers, MSMEs, and petrochemical firms, and he promised regular cargo services under the “Jalvahak” programme to follow.