The government may again send a high-powered team to China at the end of January to speed up the signing of the deal on the Padma rail link project, one of the largest infrastructure initiatives of the country.

A finance ministry official said a seven-member team led by MA Mannan, state minister for finance and planning, might fly to China on January 21. The team members will include the secretaries of the railway ministry and the Economic Relations Division.

Mannan told The Daily Star that a summary of the planned visit has been sent to the prime minister for her approval. 

He said they would hold meetings with the high-ups of the Chinese government to fast-track the project.

The rail link has been the most priority project from the Bangladesh side among the 26 projects that China committed to financing during Chinese President Xi Jinping's visit to Dhaka in 2016.

In 2017, the government's target was to sign loan agreements for eight projects involving $9.44 billion. The rail link project received a financing commitment of $3.14 billion, the highest among the eight projects.

The government also took several initiatives to sign the agreement for the rail link project, but to no avail.

The Bangladesh embassy in China has of late informed that approval from five departments is required to strike the financing agreement. The approval of the Chinese State Council, the highest policymaking body for endorsing large loans to a foreign country, is also necessary.

An official of the finance ministry said the team wants to go to China to speed up the process. It will also hold meetings with Chinese officials about the other projects to expedite the signing of the deals.

Last year, the Prime Minister's Office sent a special letter to the Chinese government highlighting the political and economic importance of the rail link project for Bangladesh. The letter also noted that the project is also part of the BCIM (Bangladesh-China-India-Myanmar) economic corridor.

Also last year, Bangladesh sent a high-powered team to Beijing with a plan to sign the deal with Exim Bank of China by December 2017.

After the communication, China also agreed to ink the deal, and the ERD sent all necessary papers in November.

Seeking anonymity, an official of the railway ministry said the primary work in the project has been carried out, but the ministry has not been able to commence the main work as it is yet to sign the deal.

The special letter added that Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina wishes to inaugurate the train services the same day the Padma bridge opens to traffic.

The rail link project is scheduled to be implemented by 2022, but a portion of it would be completed by December 2018 when the government plans to open the Padma bridge.

Of the eight projects, the loan agreements of $700 million for two projects -- Infosarkar III and the installation of single point mooring with double pipeline -- were inked.