Jiribam-Imphal railway project will boost connectivity, tourism in Manipur

Guwahati (Assam) [India], December 23 (ANI): Indian Railways is significantly contributing towards the transformation of the Northeastern states by executing several new railway line projects.
The Jiribam - Imphal new railway line project is one of the crucial connectivity projects for the Northeastern region that is at an advanced stage of completion.
Sabyasachi De, Chief Public Relations Officer (CPRO) of Northeast Frontier Railway said that the works for this new line railway project, among other connectivity projects, is also going on in full swing to connect Imphal, the capital city of Manipur to the rest of the country.

He said, "The Jiribam - Imphal project has already achieved physical progress of 91.78 per cent. Construction of the Jiribam - Imphal railway project involves multiple tunnels and bridges in tough terrains that are stretched at more than 110 km. Out of 52 tunnels, works for the 48 have already been completed. The project will have total 11 major bridges; the substructure of 7 bridges and the superstructure of 5 bridges have been completed."
Out of 129 minor bridges, the officer said works for 110 have also been completed. The tallest pier railway bridge of the world with a height of 141 meters is also being constructed in this project and nearing completion.

The NF Railway CPRO also said that the route of the project will cover 11 railway stations; six of them are completed.
"The anticipated cost of the complete project is around Rs 14,322 crore. The section from Jiribam to Khongsang has already been commissioned and the entire project is targeted to be completed by December 2023. After completion, the present road journey time of about 10 hrs to reach Imphal will get reduced to 2.5 hours by railways," De said.
He further said that the project will provide enhanced connectivity to the people of the Manipur, help grow small-scale industries in the area and boost the tourism of the state.
"It will also help in receiving of essential commodities faster by the state and help the state local producers to export their produces outside the state faster," added the CPRO of NF Railway. (ANI)