New Delhi: A Bangladesh Visa Information Centre has been opened at the Kolkata railway station on Wednesday. This was done to strengthen bilateral relations between India and Bangladesh and ease travel between the two countries.


The visa information centre will provide updated information and complete the visa application process for applicants applying for Bangladesh visa.






Kolkata Railway Station is an international station handling two inter-dominion trains connecting Kolkata to Dhaka and Khulna. The centre will especially help passengers boarding the Maitree and Bandhan Express trains.


“To facilitate such overseas passengers availing Visa services for Bangladesh-bound trains, the Visa Information and Application Centre has started operating at the Kolkata Railway Station,” Eastern Railway said in a press release on Wednesday.


The project which was conceived under the New Innovative Ideas scheme will also guide visitors from Bangladesh to expedite their visa application process.


“It is now convenient for Bangladeshi passengers...More than revenue, services are important for us & we want to give hassle-free services,” Chief Public Relations Officer of Eastern Railway Kaushik Mitra told ANI.


The information centre was inaugurated by the deputy high commissioner of Bangladesh, Andalib Elias, who said, “It will be easy for people to go to the station and get any information about Visas. We are planning to provide tourism information to whoever wants to visit Bangladesh as a tourist.”


According to ANI, visa applications can now be filed without seeking prior appointments through walk-ins at application centres in Salt Lake, Kolkata, and Siliguri.


The centre will also provide a wide range of services, including visa application form filling, photograph taking, passport collection and delivery etc.


International passengers can easily get all visa-related information from the Kolkata station while also reserving seats for the two inter-dominion trains.


Additionally, the visa information centre is also expected to fetch good revenue for the Railway Exchequer.