AT Photo (Representational image)
Hailakandi (Assam), Jan 22: Trains running on electric traction are expected to reach Barak Valley of southern Assam by the end of this year, a top Northeast Frontier Railway (NFR) official said.
Work of track electrification is going on in full swing, especially in the hilly terrain, he said.
"Installation of electric lines is going on. We are expecting that trains on electric traction will start coming to Silchar by the end of 2023," NFR general manager Ansul Gupta said in Silchar on Saturday.
The work of the installation of electric lines has been intensified in the hilly areas, he added.
Gupta visited various routes and stations of Barak Valley during the trip and assessed the progress of work.
An NFR source said Rs 2,353 crore was sanctioned in the Union Budget of 2018 for electrification of entire track length under it.
It included 2,536 km of track length in Badarpur-Lumding, Badarpur-Silchar (including Arunachal-Jiribam, Katakhal-Bairabi) and Badarpur-Sabroom (Badarpur-Karimganj Agartala-Karimganj-Mahishashan).
The work was delayed due to the outbreak of COVID-19 pandemic and consequent restrictions.
The first passenger train running entirely on electric traction had reached the North East on October 22, 2021, when the Delhi-Kamakhya (Brahmaputra) Mail Special pulled into the Kamakhya Railway Station in Guwahati.