GUWAHATI: Land acquisition across a 2km stretch in Meghalaya remains the major obstacle for Northeast Frontier Railway (NFR) to complete the 22-km broad gauge Tetelia-Byrnihat railway track.
NFR sources told The Shillong Times here on Thursday that a stalemate regarding the project continued in Meghalaya with pressure groups in the state averse to the idea of the project coming up in Byrnihat.
“We have completed work along the 20km stretch in Tetelia (Assam) but have not been able to acquire land so far in Byrnihat (Meghalaya). So there is status quo as far as the project in Meghalaya is concerned,” an NFR official here said.
The stand taken by pressure groups, including the influential Khasi Students’ Union (KSU), has been firm with organisations categorically maintaining that the project would not be allowed in the absence of a proper mechanism to check possible influx of people from outside the state.
Given the status quo and the impasse continuing too long for comfort, the March 2022 target date for completion of the track (which would be linked to Tetelia station via Kamalajari), as has been recently stated by the Indian Railways, seems ambitious as of now.
The Meghalaya Government, on the other hand, is hopeful that it would be able to proceed ahead with the project if the Centre considers granting Inner Line Permit (ILP) in the state.
It may be recalled that several KSU leaders opposing the project were arrested three years back after sporadic violence and breakdown of law and order triggered by an incident of arson at the railway track construction site at Ronghona village (Byrnihat) in May 2017.
Work was halted subsequently and there has been literally no progress thereafter.
Reportedly, a major portion of the land in Meghalaya is under the possession of NFR and some families have given away their land.
A social activist, on condition of anonymity, also speculated that some Karbi families in Ronghona have given away their land against compensation.
“There are many Karbi families in that village who might have agreed to sell their land for a reasonable compensation. It can be out of want or even fear of getting into a tangle with a government organisation,” he said.
On whether the people of Byrnihat, in general want the project to go ahead, he said that it was difficult to comment. “But once it happens, the project will certainly pave the way for growth and also generate employment for the locals,” he added. The Union Budget had projected Rs 100 crore for the project.
KHNAM reiterates opposition
Khun Hynniewtrep National Awakening Movement (KHNAM) has reiterated its opposition to the proposed railway track in Meghalaya until the Inner Line Permit (ILP) was introduced in the state.
“The state government has unanimously passed a resolution for the implementation of ILP. However, it is seen that the government has been quiet since then and it did not act according to the resolution passed, which makes us believe that the resolution was just an eyewash to buy time and calm down the citizens of the state,” KHNAM youth wing president, Thomas Passah, told The Shillong Times on Thursday.
The Regional Democratic Alliance (RDA), a major constituent of the Meghalaya Government, had submitted a memorandum to Chief Minister Conrad Sangma on Monday, opposing the government’s move to facilitate the railway line to Ri Bhoi district and also other parts of the state in the absence of an effective mechanism to address the issue of influx and illegal immigration.
The RDA had stated in the memorandum that the state has incurred huge losses owing to the intermittent agitation and upheavals over influx fears.
“The fear and apprehension on the part of the indigenous population of the state of being overwhelmed by the influx of outsiders cannot be ignored,” it stated in the memorandum.