In a bid to further improve connectivity and boost prosperity in the North-Eastern Region, N. F. Railway has extended the services of Guwahati – Lumding – Guwahati Express upto Shokhuvi in Nagaland in one end and up to Mendipathar in Meghalaya on the other. Moreover, foundation stone of a Modern Cargo cum Coaching Terminal has also been laid at Agthori station. Smt. Droupadi Murmu, President of India flagged off the inaugural service of this train and laid the foundation stone of the proposed terminal virtually today on 14th October, 2022 from Srimanta Sankardev Kalakshetra, Guwahati. In this auspicious occasion Prof. Jagdish Mukhi, Hon’ble Governor of Assam, Dr. Himanta Biswa Sarma, Hon’ble Chief Minister of Assam, Shri Rameswar Teli, Union Minister of State in Petroleum and Natural Gas, Smt Ajanta Neog, Hon’ble Minister of Finance & Social Welfare, Govt. of Assam, Shri Ranoj Pegu, Hon’ble Minister of Education, Welfare of Plain Tribe & Backward Classes, Govt. of Assam and Shri Bimal Borah, Hon’ble Minsiter of Industries & Commerce and Public Enterprises and Cultural Affairs, Govt. of Assam were present. Shri Anshul Gupta, General Manager of N. F. Railway along with other senior officials was also present.
Speaking on the occasion, President said that she was pleased to inaugurate the train services and thanked Shri Ashwini Vaishnaw, Union Minister of Railways, Communications and Electronics & Information Technology and his entire team for their sincere effort in further augmenting rail connectivity in N.E. region.
The Mendipathar – Guwahati passenger special will depart from Mendipathar with a new train no. 05607 on every Tuesday & Thursday to reach Guwahati on the same day. The same train will depart from Guwahati the same day with a changed train no. 05605 to reach Shokhuvi on the same day. In return direction, the Shokhuvi – Guwahati passenger special will depart from Shokhuvi with a new train no. 05606 on every Wednesday & Friday to reach Guwahati on the same day. The same train will depart from Guwahati on every Wednesday & Monday with a changed train no. 05608 to reach Mendipathar on the same day. Existing train no. 05601 (Guwahati – Lumding) Passenger Special will depart from Guwahati on every Friday, Saturday & Sunday to reach Lumding on the same day. In return direction, train no. 05602 (Lumding – Guwahati) Passenger Special will depart from Lumding on every Saturday, Sunday & Monday to reach Guwahati on the same day.
This is the first direct passenger train service connecting Meghalaya and Nagaland. It will boost the interstate connectivity in the region fulfilling long pending demand of the people of both the states. Mendipathar is the only railway station in Meghalaya having passenger train operations. Shokhuvi is the 2nd railway station in Nagaland to get train connectivity after a gap of more than 100 years. It may be mentioned here that, the first direct passenger train connecting Nagaland with Arunachal Pradesh was started on 26th August, 2022 by N.F. Railway. This extended service of Guwahati – Lumding upto Shokhuvi will be second passenger train connecting Shokhuvi in Nagaland.
With the vision of Pradhan Mantri Gati Shakti Scheme, foundation stone of a Modern Cargo cum Coaching Terminal was laid at Agthori station. This will facilitate the traders with regular supply of perishable and white goods for NE region. This terminal will have world class standards facilities and infrastructures. The terminal will have parcel office, labour rest room, circulating area and space enough for inward and outward movement of trucks. It will also act as a mediator for transportation of goods coming from different parts of the country to the entire seven sister states with new Gati and Shakti.
The commencement of these train service and cargo terminal is a major step towards improving connectivity and facilitating development of all the north-eastern states. This will lead to easy movement of passengers and material throughout India and bring more employment opportunities for the people of northeast.
