India and Bangladesh signed the standard operating procedure (SOP) in New Delhi, to operationalise the Agreement on Coastal Shipping, signed between the two countries in June, 2015. The SOP will pave the way to promote coastal shipping between India and Bangladesh and would enhance bilateral trade between the two countries by bringing down the cost of transportation of EXIM cargo. The SOP contains provisions which stipulate that India and Bangladesh shall render same treatment to the other country's vessels as it would have done to its national vessels used in international sea transportation. The two sides have also agreed upon the use of vessels of River Sea Vessel category for Indo-Bangladesh coastal shipping. Speaking on the occasion, Nitin Gadkari, minister of road, Transport, Highways and Shipping said that once it is operational, the Coastal Shipping Agreement would enable a huge saving in logistic costs of EXIM transport between the two countries. The SOP has been framed as per the terms and conditions of the Agreement on Coastal Shipping and both India and Bangladesh have agreed to its provisions. The present connectivity through sea route with Bangladesh is through ports of Colombo and Singapore. The long sea route adds significantly to the transportation costs of EXIM trade.