Nagaland: Dimapur–Kohima new BG railway line project to be completed by 2026

The Northeast Frontier Railway (NFR) said the 82.5 km Dimapur-Kohima new railway line project is making steady progress with construction works going on in full swing.

While the first phase of 16.5 km from Dhansiri to Shokhuvi was completed in October 2021, the complete project is targeted to be completed by 2026, NFR chief public relations officer Sabyasachi De said in a release on Tuesday. 

The next phase of work from Shokhuvi to Pherima is likely to be completed very soon, De said.

The new railway line project which starts from Dhansiri station in Assam to Zubza adjacent to Kohima is being undertaken by Northeast Frontier Railway Construction Organisation at an anticipated cost of Rs 6,663 crore.

The release said 2.75 km of the total length of the project falls in Assam while 79.75 km in Nagaland with eight new stations - Dhansiri, Dhansiripar, Shokhuvi, Molvom, Pherima, Piphema, Menguzuma and Zubza.

In the new railway line, there are 24 major bridges, 156 minor bridges, six road over bridges, 15 road under bridges and 21 tunnels measuring 31 km in total. Tunnel no. 7 (6520 metre) between Pherima to Piphema is the longest among all the tunnels of the project.

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The project has been divided into three phases for ease of commissioning, De said.

Stating that the new railway line will bring Nagaland’s capital city Kohima into the broad gauge railway map of the country, NFR said.

It said passenger train services from Shokhuvi to Naharlagun in Arunachal Pradesh and Mendipathar in Meghalaya were introduced recently to enhance intra-regional rail connectivity in various northeastern states.

The NFR said the new rail connectivity in Nagaland will also help in the transportation of food grains and other infrastructural items to the state from other parts of the country at a much cheaper cost, benefitting the local populace.

It added that the construction of new railway lines to connect all the state capitals of the northeastern region is going on under capital connectivity projects.