Nagaland’s capital may witness railway connectivity only in 2029

November 15, 2024 2 Views No Comment

Dimapur, November 15 (MExN): Nagaland’s capital, Kohima, may have to wait at least five more years for railway connectivity, with the construction of the Dhansiri-Zubza new line project now targeted for completion only in December 2029.

This information was shared during a review meeting of the Northeast Frontier Railway (NFR) with the Members of Parliament covering the Tinsukia division on November 14.

As per the details, the Target Date of Completion (TDC) for the Pherima-Zubza section of the project, covering a distance of 7.57 kilometres, is set for December 2029. The work for the entire project is being carried out by the NFR Construction Organisation, and so far, physical progress achieved is 59%.

The anticipated cost for the entire project is Rs 6663.2 crore. There are eight stations involved in the project: Dhansiri, Dhansiripar, Shukhovi, Molovom, Pherima, Piphema, Menguzuma, and Zubza.

This new timeline appears to be far behind the earlier deadline, which aimed for commissioning of the whole project by 2026.
In December 2023, an official NFR release informed that the ongoing Dhansiri-Zubza new line project, up to Molvom and Pherima, was also expected to be completed by September 2024.

During the opening of Shokhuvi station in August 2022, an NFR official had stated that Molvom was scheduled to be completed by March/April 2023. However, the project now appears to be significantly behind schedule, according to the latest timeline.