Second meeting held to monitor implementation of the Chabahar port agreement

The second meeting between officials of India, Afghanistan and Iran took place in New Delhi on December 20, 2019 to monitor implementation of the 2016 agreement regarding development and management of the Chabahar port in Iran.

• The three countries welcomed steady progress in port operations by India Ports Global Ltd company since the taking over of the port operations at Shaheed Beheshti Port at Chabahar in December 2018.
• During the meeting, it was agreed to finalise the protocol to harmonise transit, roads, customs and consular matters. It was also agreed to organise promotional and business events in Afghanistan and India to popularise the Chabahar port.
• It was recognized that over five lakh tons of cargo has been handled successfully. This includes exports from Afghanistan through Chabahar Port which began in February this year.

About Chabahar port

• India started interacting with Iran on Chabahar Port around 2003 but a major push was received in the second half of 2014, resulting in the signing of an MOU between the two countries for the development of Chabahar Port in May 2015.
• This MOU translated into a formal 10-year Contract for Equipping and Operating the Chabahar Port, which was executed on 23^rd May 2016, during Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi’s visit to Tehran .
• Since there were challenges in activation of the said contract, the foundation of an interim period contract was laid during the visit of Dr. Hassan Rouhani, President of Islamic Republic of Iran to New Delhi in February 2018. Resultantly a formal short term Contract between the two sides was signed on 6^th May 2018.
• The Government of India took over the operations of a part of Shahid Beheshti Port, Chabahar in Iran during the Chabahar Trilateral Agreement meeting held there on the 24th of December 2018. The heads of Indian, Iranian and Afghanistan delegation jointly inaugurated the office of the Indian SPV – India Ports Global Chabahar Free Zone (IPGCFZ), at Chabahar. The physical take-over of the terminal area, cargo handling equipment and Office building was completed by 29th December 2018.