Iran finishes Chabahar-Zahedan rail track, operations expected after final safety checks
An Iranian train, as the Chabahar-Zahedan railway moves closer to operations. (Image courtesy: X.com/@Infragati)
New Delhi: Iran has completed track laying on the Chabahar-Zahedan railway, bringing the strategic route linking Chabahar port with southeastern Iran closer to operation and strengthening a potential connectivity corridor towards Afghanistan and Central Asia. The line is undergoing final technical and safety preparations, with full operations expected in about three to four months.
For India, the project strengthens the infrastructure behind Chabahar’s role as a maritime to land gateway towards Afghanistan, Central Asia and wider Eurasian markets without relying on transit through Pakistan. Cargo would still move through a multimodal chain involving sea transport to Chabahar, Iranian rail links and onward border or railway networks depending on its destination.
Iranian reporting puts the railway’s main line at about 630 kilometers and its total length at roughly 735 kilometers, including branch lines. The project includes 33 stations, 39 tunnels and 201 crossings and major bridges, while the Economic Times reported that Iranian authorities are carrying out final safety checks before full operations begin.
India has long viewed Chabahar as an alternative gateway to Afghanistan and Central Asia. The India-Iran-Afghanistan transit framework envisages the port as part of a wider regional connectivity network, while the completed rail track is intended to allow cargo reaching Chabahar to move inland towards Zahedan and Iran’s national railway system.
India ports global limited signed a 10-year contract with Iran’s ports and maritime Organization in May 2024 to equip and operate the Shahid Beheshti terminal. The Indian government has described Chabahar as a gateway for trade with Afghanistan and the broader Central Asian region.
As RNA Media reported earlier, the prime minister, Narendra Modi, and the Iranian president, Masoud Pezeshkian, reviewed bilateral ties and regional developments on the sidelines of the 18th BRICS Summit in New Delhi earlier this month.
The more immediate challenge is the sanctions environment surrounding the port. The conditional US sanctions waiver covering Chabahar expired on April 26, with the external affairs ministry saying India remains engaged with all concerned stakeholders over the future of its operations there.
Media reports say that the two sides are discussing an interim arrangement under which a local Iranian ports authority could manage operations while safeguarding India’s contractual rights, with those rights reverting to India if sanctions constraints are lifted. No final arrangement has yet been publicly announced.
