Tourists and traders from the Northeast, who wish to travel to Dhaka by the bi-weekly Mitali Express, can now book their tickets at the Guwahati railway station itself.

Earlier, one had to travel to New Jalpaiguri or Calcutta in neighbouring Bengal to purchase tickets for the train that connects New Jalpaiguri in Bengal with the Bangladesh capital.

The Northeast Frontier Railway (NFR) said on Friday that Guwahati railway station has started operating an overseas ticketing counter to help commuters availing the New Jalpaiguri-Dhaka-New Jalpaiguri Mitali Express.

The counter was opened on September 27 near the existing Guwahati booking office and will remain open on all working days from 8am to 8pm.

The NFR also said tourists and traders from Assam and its adjacent states such as Manipur, Mizoram, Meghalaya, Tripura and Nagaland would benefit from the opening of the overseas counter as they don’t have to travel to Calcutta or New Jalpaiguri to purchase tickets for Mitali Express.

“Commuters can now avail of the same facility at the Guwahati railway station which has become the third place to get tickets for Mitali Express after New Jalpaiguri and Calcutta. We are expecting a good response,” NFR chief public relations officer Sabyasachi De said.

It takes around 10 hours to cover a distance of about 513km between New Jalpaiguri and Dhaka.

De further said, “A GST @5 per cent will have to be paid in addition to the ticket fare. The exchange price of US $ will be taken according to the current rate on the very first day of the month of the journey. For booking of tickets, passengers are requested to carry valid passport and visa.”

Mitali Express which connects India and Bangladesh was flagged off on June 1. It runs two days a week leaving New Jalpaiguri at 11:45am (IST) every Sunday and Wednesday to reach Dhaka Cantonment at 10.30pm (BST).

“In the return direction, Dhaka Cantonment – New Jalpaiguri Mitali Express also runs two days a week on Monday and Thursday leaving Dhaka Cantonment at 21:50 hours (BST) to reach New Jalpaiguri at 07:15 hours (IST) on Tuesday and Friday,” the NFR said.