India and Bangladesh signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) today to facilitate multi- modal transport by river and road of over dimensional consignments of machinery to be used for the Palatana power project in Tripura through Ashuganj Port. The Roads & Highways Chief Engineer of Bangladesh, Mr. Azizur Rahman and India's Oil and Natural Gas Corporation's Senior Adviser, Mr. R. K. Madan signed the MOU in Dhaka which outlines the modalities of transport of the heavy equipment for the power plant in Tripura in the presence of Bangladesh Shipping Minister Shah Jahan Khan and other senior officials. Earlier in the year New Delhi and Dhaka amended the Inland Water Transit and Trade protocol to include Ashuganj in Bangladesh and Silghat in India as ports of call. With the signing of the MOU the Heavy equipment for the power plant will be brought by large ferries to Ashuganj which is around forty nine kilometres from the Tripura border. The equipment will be unloaded at Ashuganj and then loaded onto trucks for onward transportation to Palatana by road. In the joint statement issued during Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s visit to India, it was agreed that a joint team will assess the cost for improvement of infrastructure for one-time or longer term transportation of Over Dimensional Cargo from Ashuganj and India will make the necessary investment to facilitate the upgradation of the facilities.