[Bengia Ajum]
NEW DELHI, 10 Aug: In a major setback to the efforts of extending railway connectivity in the state, the proposed 21.13 kms long Naharkatia (Assam)-Deomali (Arunachal Pradesh), and the 25.97 kms long Margherita-Deomali railway projects have been shelved for now to due to low traffic projections.
Responding to a question raised in the Rajya Sabha by MP Nabam Rebia regarding the status of the projects, the railway ministry said that a survey was conducted in 2021-’22 for the Naharkatia-Deomali line.
“As per the survey, the cost of the project was assessed as Rs 1,260.13 crore. The project could not be taken forward due to low traffic projections,” the ministry replied.
Further, the new line project from Margherita-Deomali has also been evaluated after completion of the survey in 2017-’18.
“The cost of the project was assessed as Rs 999 crore. This project could not be taken forward due to low traffic projections,” they added.
At present Margherita and Naharkatia have existing railway stations and are connected via the new Tinsukia junction. The decision to extend service upto Deomali was expected to connect Tirap, Changlang and Longding districts with railway line.
At present, railway has reached upto Naharlagun in the ICR. There is a wider plan to connect several other places with railways, as announced by the government of India.
