KOHIMA: The proposed lying of railway tracks between Dimapur to Kohima may get delayed due to land acquisition row.
Official sources said the Ministry of Railways had sanction Rs 850 crore to construct rail tracks between Dimapur to Zubza, about 15 km from Kohima.
It said the construction work was handed over to the Northeast Frontier Railway (NFR), with its headquarters at Maligaon, near Guwahati.
The 40 km tracks was cleared after the visit of a strong team of NFR and the members of the Rail India Technical and Economic Survey (RITES) under the Ministry of Railways to Dimapur.
The team surveyed the topography of the area through which lines will pass through.
The survey of the proposed railway line had already been done but the contraction work could not be taken up for the non-settlement of the price of lands to be occupied by railways with the landowners.
Sources said in the first phase, the construction will begin with the 20 km distance up to Chumukedima, near Dimapur, where only five km of tracks will pass through hilly areas.
This hard part of construction is likely to be completed within a period of three years, out of the excepted seven years for the entire project.
The proposed railway line will touch 24 villages and towns with its final halt at Zubza under Kohima district.
There are proposal of three by-pass tunnels all along the 40 Kms routes, however the track alignment is subject to alteration after final assessment, sources said. (UNI)