First international cargo from Dibrugarh since Independence: 540 tonnes of APCL methanol leaves Bogibeel for Dhaka via NW-2
On 5 October 2026, Sarbananda Sonowal flagged off a barge carrying 540 tonnes of Namrup-made methanol from Bogibeel Terminal, Dibrugarh, to Bangladesh — the first cargo from upper Assam to a foreign port since 1947.
Summary
Union Ports, Shipping and Waterways Minister Sarbananda Sonowal flagged off the vessel DLB Patkai, pushed by the tug Kushal Konwar, from Bogibeel Terminal in Dibrugarh, Assam, on 5 October 2026, with Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma joining virtually. The barge carries 540 metric tonnes of methanol produced by Assam Petro-Chemicals Ltd at Namrup to Pangaon Port in Dhaka, Bangladesh. It will sail about 768 km on National Waterway-2 (Brahmaputra) to the Indo-Bangladesh border and then follow the Indo-Bangladesh Protocol Route, about 1,300 km in all. It is the first cargo shipped from upper Assam to a foreign port since Independence; Dibrugarh’s river ghat had closed on 15 October 1956.
Key facts
- Date
- 5 October 2026
- Flagged off by
- Sarbananda Sonowal (CM Himanta Biswa Sarma joined virtually)
- From → To
- Bogibeel Terminal, Dibrugarh → Pangaon Port, Dhaka
- Cargo
- 540 tonnes methanol (Assam Petro-Chemicals Ltd, Namrup)
- Vessel
- DLB Patkai pushed by tug Kushal Konwar
- Route
- About 768 km on NW-2, then Indo-Bangladesh Protocol Route; ~1,300 km total
- NW-2
- Sadiya–Dhubri stretch of Brahmaputra (891 km), declared in 1988
- History
- Dibrugarh ghat closed on 15 October 1956
Practice MCQs 2 questions
The first international cargo flagged off from Bogibeel Terminal, Dibrugarh, on 5 October 2026 carried which product to Bangladesh?
Show answer
Correct answer: C — Methanol
National Waterway-2, used for the Dibrugarh–Dhaka cargo voyage of October 2026, covers which stretch of the Brahmaputra?
Show answer
Correct answer: A — Sadiya to Dhubri (891 km)