Train services again disrupted in parts of NE due to landslides

Guwahati, July 3 (IANS) Railway services between South Assam, Tripura, Manipur, Mizoram, and the rest of the country via Guwahati again disrupted on Thursday due to landslides in the Lumding-Badarpur Hill section, officials said.

The Northeast Frontier Railway (NFR) Chief Public Relations Officer (CPRO) Kapinjal Kishore Sharma said that trains running in the Lumding-Badarpur hill section got disrupted from Thursday evening due to a landslide between Dihakho-Mupa stations.

On receiving information, senior railway officials have reached the site to start restoration work, he said, adding that the work is underway in full swing under the supervision of senior engineers and officials.

Sharma said that due to the landslide, the track has been suspended until clearance of boulders and earth that have fallen on the track. Help desks have been opened to facilitate passengers at Guwahati, Lumding, Silchar, Badarpur and Agartala stations.

As a result of the landslide, five trains bound for several cities have been cancelled, while several other trains have been rescheduled and regulated.

Passengers are advised to stay updated through official NFR communication channels for the latest travel and train service information.

Meanwhile, after a week of disruption due to landslides in the same Lumding-Badarpur Hill section, regular train services between South Assam, Tripura, Manipur, Mizoram, and the rest of the country via Guwahati fully resumed on June 30.

The vital train services in the Lumding-Badarpur Hill Section of the Lumding division have been disrupted since June 23 after landslides badly affected the railway track in the mountainous areas under Assam's Dima Hasao district.

During the monsoon period (June to September), every year, several northeastern states, especially Tripura, Mizoram, Manipur and southern Assam, remain cut off from the rest of the country for weeks owing to landslides, waterlogging and damage to railway tracks, leading to hardship for the people of the region.

--IANS

sc/dan