SHILLONG: The Northeast Frontier Railway (NFR) will talk to all the stakeholders in Meghalaya to ensure that the railway project at least till Byrnihat is materialised.
Sources said that NFR will talk to all the stakeholders, including NGOs to explain to them about the benefits of having railways in the state.
According to sources, some officials of the NFR had held discussions with the Khasi Students’ Union last year.
The KSU is opposing the railway project in Khasi Hills.
The NFR said that they want to hold talks since all the fears of the people in the state can be removed by way of discussions and by taking important measures to tackle the concerns of influx.
It was also informed that the NFR is willing to take safeguards to check influx into the state and Meghalaya government is keen to have entry and exit point in the proposed Byrnihat railway station like the one in Mendipathar railway station where an entry and exit point is being created to check influx. “Things are moving in a positive direction but all these will take some time,” sources said.
At present, the NFR which is implementing the Tetelia-Byrnihat railway line is working only in Assam portion whereas the Meghalaya portion is not being touched until and unless the state government gives the green signal.
The NFR is also hopeful that one day, the railways would be welcomed in Meghalaya after it takes all the confidence building measures. The construction work of the Tetelia-Byrnihat railway line was halted since couple of years due to opposition from local NGOs who fear that railways would bring large scale influx into Meghalaya.
Out of the 21-km project, only around 2 kilometer falls under the jurisdiction of Meghalaya.
Byrnihat- Shillong project
Similarly, the plan to have rail connectivity to Shillong has not fructified as the KHADC has refused to issue NOC for the project.
In the Proposed Byrnihat- Shillong railway line, there are 10 proposed railway stations, including Byrnihat, Sohkhwai, Lailad, Umsong, Umar, Nongsder, Kyrdemkulai, Umroi, Umpling and New Shillong.
A note from the officials of NFR said that Tetelia-Byrnihat is near completion and work is also in progress for Kamalajari-Byrnihat Assam portion. The work for the 2.5 km in Byrnihat in Meghalaya was started initially but halted in May 2017 due to opposition.
The note added that the second project connecting Shillong has started only in the form of submitting land acquisition proposals to the state government up to 17 km from Byrnihat. The NOC for this is pending with KHADC.
Transportation of goods
The main benefits that railway will bring by connecting to Shillong are in terms of transportation of goods by good trains which will reduce the cost of transportation both for inwards and outwards freights.
In addition, there will be opportunity for the local people to engage and take control in the business of loading and unloading in Shillong, the note said, adding Meghalaya is rich in hard stones, coal, limestone and with a railway line in the state, there is the potential to supply stones, limestone, cement and boulders outside through trains which will create some economic activity for the people.
It also said that during the construction of railway line a lot of economic activities will take place for the people in the form of supply of stone chips, boulders, sand and scope for participating in the construction of railway line directly and there will be employment opportunity for the people for serving in the railways
“Whenever allowed, passenger trains will connect Shillong to the rest of the country with less cost and once the trains are allowed, there will be increase of direct tourists to Shillong which will create more opportunities for vehicles hiring from Shillong and not from Guwahati. This will create more employment opportunity for the locals,” the note said.
Low cost journey
It also said that a local passenger train between Shillong to Byrnihat will help the people safe. Low cost and reliable transportation is added advantage.
The New Shillong Railway Station being proposed on the outskirts of the city will help to reduce the traffic congestion in Umiam-Shillong stretch of the road to some extent.
Appreciating the fears of the NGOs that railway will facilitate inflow of people from outside the state to Khasi and Jaintia Hills, the note said that though railway is a central government transport agency, a very few local youths from the state have joined railway services as compared to others.
“There are many opportunities for engineers and graduates to get railway jobs,” note said.
The note also added that the state government is devising a mechanism to check influx by putting entry and exit points and till this mechanism is in place, the state government may find some alternatives which include allowing only goods trains to move up to Shillong which will help reduce the cost of transportation and create economic opportunity for all.
“The major source of revenue for railways is from goods earning and railway may agree with the proposals. As can be seen like in Tripura, the introduction of passenger trains are mostly through demands of the state government,” note said
It also said that the Byrnihat- Shillong is a 108.4 km long project with full of challenges for construction due to steep gradients, hills and valley and there will be number of tunnels in the section, adding the project will take at about 8 to 10 years to reach Shillong. `
“The railway line to Shillong with some measures will definitely be in the interest of our society. It is for the society, the government, students unions and social welfare groups to have a relook into the matter from a positive angle to the issue,” the note said.
