Jogbani, located in Arariya district of Bihar, is the nearest Indian railhead for Nepal. Currently, it is connected to Katihar town in Bihar through metre gauge tracks.

Eastern Railway authorities, who held a meeting with traders at Biratnagar in eastern Nepal this week, say work to upgrade the track to broad gauge has begun, and the first direct train services between Jogbani and Kolkata are likely from March, private television station Kantipur reported Thursday.

Morang Trade Association, an umbrella body of traders in eastern Nepal, had been urging the Indian government to upgrade the track for nearly three decades.

A broad gauge link up to Jogbani will boost Nepal's trade with India, slashing transport costs. At present, Nepali traders send out export items and bring in raw materials by truck and container. The metre gauge track is mostly used to bring in salt and coal.

In addition to the upgrade, India has also responded positively to the Nepali request for a warehouse, the TV station said.

The construction of a warehouse at the Jogbani station instead of Bathnaha town in India would benefit both Indian and Nepali traders since a transit agreement between the two countries allow the latter to travel only up to the nearest railhead on the Indo-Nepal border.

India plans to build the warehouse at Jogbani by 2017, the report said.