GUWAHATI, Feb 27: Northeast Frontier Railway (NFR) general manager Chetan Kumar Shrivastava conducted a review meeting with senior officials at the NFR headquarters here on Thursday to assess the progress of the new Gati Shakti cargo terminals.
The cargo terminals are being developed across the region as a part of NFR’s commitment to enhancing freight logistics and streamlining cargo handling infrastructure under the PM Gati Shakti framework.
Union minister of railways Ashwini Vaishnaw, during his address at the Advantage Assam 2.0 summit here on Tuesday, announced the development of six new Gati Shakti cargo terminals in Assam, in addition to the two already existing terminals at Moinarband near Silchar and Cinnamara near Jorhat.
Gati Shakti cargo terminals are state-of-the-art logistics terminals being built with the participation of major industry partners for faster and more efficient handling of cargo. These terminals are equipped with modern facilities which will improve the efficiency of freight logistics in the region and bring down the logistics costs, thereby enabling India to improve its position in the Logistics Performance Index (LPI).
One of these Gati Shakti cargo terminals is being developed at Baihata in Assam’s Kamrup district, constructed by BR Transcon Ltd. The terminal will feature three new goods lines, an electronic in-motion weighbridge, durable goods circulating area with two goods platforms, high mast lighting for round the clock operations and special ramp for efficient handling of automobiles, among other facilities.
“It is expected that more than 25 freight rakes will be handled at this terminal every month. The NFR general manager instructed the concerned officials to ensure completion of this work within the next one month,” an official said in a statement.
Similarly, work on the Gati Shakti cargo terminal at the Jogighopa multi modal logistics park is also in an advanced stage, and is targeted to be completed by March 2025.