Union Minister of Ports, Shipping and Waterways Sarbananda Sonowal on Saturday visited Shahid Beheshti port at Chabahar in Iran to review the progress in the development of the port, an official statement said.
According to the statement, Sonowal said that India remains committed to developing and popularizing Chabahar Port in Iran, Business Standard reported.
He was accompanied by India's Ambassador to Iran, Gaddam Dharmendra and Ali Akbar Safaei, deputy minister and Managing Director of Ports and Maritime Organization of Iran.
Sonowal reiterated the role Chabahar port can play in reducing distance, time and cost.
It was decided to form a joint technical committee for smooth functioning of the port, the statement said, adding that the meeting also addressed the future course of action towards development of the port.
The map shows India’s transit route to Afghanistan via Iran’s Chabahar Port.
Sonowal also said that both India and Iran are continuously working towards making the International North South Transport Corridor as the preferred route of trade between the two regions.
Under a 10-year agreement with Iran, India has committed to develop and operate Shahid Beheshti terminal in Chabahar, located on the Sea of Oman in southeast Iran.
However, Iranian authorities say the pace of India’s works in Chabahar has not been satisfactory despite the fact that New Delhi has received exemptions from American sanctions on Iran to be able to develop the port.
Political developments in Afghanistan, a main trade partner on the Chabahar route, also caused delays to India’s terminal development plans in the port.
That comes as Iran has continued to build the required infrastructure needed to increase activity in Chabahar, including a major railway connecting the port to Zahedan near the border with Afghanistan while it has re-routed major bulk and container shipments to the port from established trade gateways in the Persian Gulf.