Aizawl: With land acquisition having been cleared, the Bairabi-Sairang railway project in Mizoram is expected to make headway soon.
The Kolasib district administration started distribution of compensation to private landowners in Mualkhang sector, the last major hurdle from, Tuesday last, an official source said.
The land acquisition had run into a deadlock following doubtful compensation claimants. After an investigation, 21 of the claims in this sector were found to be fake. Compensation has been given to the genuine 123 landowners on Tuesday.
Compensation had been already given to landowners in Kawnpui, Hortoki, Bairabi and Khamrang.
Altogether, 359 private lands including cemetery in Bairabi village, 589 private lands under Hortoki village, 159 private lands under Kawnpui village, 78 private lands under Khamrang village and 123 private lands under Mualkhang village have been acquired for the 51.3km railway line project.
The Bairabi-Sairang (Sihhmui) railway line will cover 40 km within Kolasib district and 11 km within Aizawl district.
As per the joint verification of district administrators of Kolasib and Aizawl and officials of revenue and forest departments, a total of 74.488 hectares of forest and 352.792 hectare of private land, a total of 427.28 hectares, will be required for the railway project.
The original outlay of this project, when the inter-state 51 km Lalabazar-Bairabi mt gauge link was commissioned, was envisaged at Rs 519.34 crore in 1995. It was revised to Rs 2,384.34 crore for a track through the hills and forests.
The landmark project of the extension of the vital broad gauge rail link between Bairabi rail terminus on the Mizoram-Assam border and Sairang, a small town 20 km west of Aizawl, is targeted to be completed by March 2015.
However, owing to these several hurdles, the North East Frontier Railway (NEFR) feared that the project would not be completed within the stipulated time.
The Mizoram government had set up the 12-member state level task force, chaired by Zasanga, a retired official of the Indian postal service, to help the NFR (construction) to complete the rail project.
According to Zasanga, 23 tunnels, 154 long bridges and 46 short bridges would have to be built in the railway extension project.
Rs 2,380 crore earmarked for completion of the project is estimated to cover all the expenses for railway lines, tunnels, bridges and even compensation.
“The project, being a national one, will be administered by the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) and the Centre would bear 75 per cent of its cost and the rest would be borne by the railways,” said Zasanga. (UNI)
