GUWAHATI, March 3 � The Assam Association, Mumbai (AAM) has expressed its utter displeasure over the failure of the Union Railway Ministry in introducing a superfast train between Dibrugarh and Mumbai. The AAM has been demanding for quite long time introduction of such a superfast train between these two destinations for the benefit of the cancer patients and students hailing from the NE region.
The AAM has said in a statement received here that hundreds of cancer patients and thousands of students from the NE region regularly travel to Mumbai, Pune and other western parts of the country. Besides, job seekers, artistes, artists, service holders, professionals and their families also require traveling regularly between the NE destinations and Mumbai, said the AAM.
The plight of the cancer patients is well known to everyone including the political leaders of the North East. It takes almost 55hrs to reach Mumbai from Guwahati by train. Moreover, the trains are run with a frequency of only three days in a week. The contrast is such that other States like Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan etc., are having significant railway connections with Mumbai and the rest of the country, said the AAM in its statement.
The Association has informed that it had placed the matter before Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi in a meeting held in Mumbai on October 30, 2012. The Chief Minister had taken up the issue with the Railway Minister immediately. The Association is also aware of the fact that DoNER Minister Paban Singh Ghatowar had also taken up the issue with the Railway ministry. But, regrettably, the Railway minister paid no heed to the pleas made by the Assam State Government and the DoNER ministry, said the AAM.
The Association has made an appeal to the political leaders of the NE region to take up the issue with the Union Government vociferously sinking all their political differences.
It needs mention here that the AAM in its urgent executive committee meeting held on February 27 at Mumbai discussed the issue and reiterated the demand for introduction of a superfast train between Dibrugarh and Mumbai. The meeting was presided over by AAM president PK Kotaky, said the statement.
