JIRIBAM, May 28 - Happiness for Chandralekha Devi, Gracy Sharma, Suraj Thokchom and many others at the Jiribam railway station knew no bounds on Friday as they witnessed the much awaited first passenger train chug off the station after Prime Minister Narendra Modi flagged it off via remote control from Shillong at 4:22pm. This brought a satisfying end to the old demand for broad-gauge connectivity between Manipur and Assam.
The Prime Minister also flagged off the Bhairabi-Silchar passenger and the Kamakhya-Katara weekly express train as well.
�We are happy to have this train. This will not only facilitate the communication between Jiribam and Silchar but will also usher in business possibilities in this remote part of the country, said octogenarian Rajanikanta Singh who came to the station to be a part of the historical moment. Even as there were no slogans of �Modi zindabad� noticed in the station campus, loud cries by passengers from the train hailing the Prime Minister could be heard as the train stopped in the stations on the way to Silchar. The train reached Silchar at 7pm.
Ajit Pandit, Chief Administrative Officer, NF Railway, in his speech said that prior to the construction of the broad-gauge line, Jiribam was the only meter gauge rail head of Manipur. He added to say the meter gauge line from Arunachal near Silchar to Jiribam was constructed in 1989-90. The line was sanctioned in 2000-01; the first freight train on the section was run in on 20 February this year, he said. �The line has been constructed covering a cost of Rs 252 crores and the speed potential as certified by the CRS inspection report is 90 kmph. The first daily passenger train on the section has brought Manipur into the railway map of India.� He was quick to add that the railway line from Jiribam will be further extended to the capital city of Imphal with the construction of a new 1110.62 km broad gauge line at an estimated cost of 9047core. �We are aiming to wrap up the project extending up to the capital city of Imphal by the year 2020 and we shall reach Tupul within 2019,� Pandit said.
The 55665 Silchar Jiribam passenger train will leave Silchar at 845am to reach Jiribam at 11am. On the return journey, the 55666 Jiribam-Silchar passenger train will leave Jiribam at 11:45am to reach Silchar at 2 pm. the train will have seven stoppages. The first 12.5 km of this line from Jiribam to Dholakhal has been completed and commissioned for freight train running. The new line project has also been declared a national project. There is also a plan for extension of this line to Moreh near Myanmar border. On the other hand, Dr Thokchom Meinya, MP Manipur (inner) urged the railway authorities to alter the timings in the larger interest of the passengers so that they would be able to catch the trains to Guwahati. Thangso Baite, MP Manipur (outer) hailed the efforts of the Government and congratulated the NF Railways for the landmark achievement. He said that despite a change of guard at the Centre, the present Government has materialised the long pending demand of the people of Manipur.