Amidst opposition from different NGOs and social organisations over railway projects in Meghalaya, Deputy Chief Minister in Charge of Transport, Sniawbhalang Dhar said that the state government has not dropped the idea of having the railway project in East Jaintia Hills.
Deputy CM Dhar told Northeast Live that the state government is in discussion with the stakeholders.
Dhar said that the Meghalaya government will talk to all the stakeholders, particularly those from the ‘local’ area, before moving ahead with the feasibility study on railways in the East Jaintia Hills.
He added that the state government will create awareness before moving ahead with the project.
Reacting to NGOs, pressure groups opposing railway projects without Inner Line Permit (ILP), Dhar said, “Center is still examining ILP, they are not keeping quiet.”
‘Centre is a government, it’s not a private body’, Dhar said when asked about the query to HYC on why the Centre is taking so long to examine ILP.
It may be mentioned that when it comes to the railways in the Khasi Hills and Ri Bhoi sections, everything is being put on hold amid various NGOs and the Khasi Students Union (KSU) opposing railway projects in the state, fearing an illegal influx of immigrants posing a threat to the indigenous communities.
Earlier, Chief Minister Conrad Sangma said that the Shillong to Byrnihat rail project may be cancelled, and the money that has been outlaid for this project will be diverted and put up for projects in other zones or other areas of the state.
However, he said that the success of the project will largely depend on discussions with local leaders and different stakeholders.
KSU, the apex students body of Meghalaya, has blatantly objected the railway project fearing it would open the floodgates for illegal immigrants.
Earlier, during the Budget Session of Parliament in February this year, Railways Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said that the 108-km Byrnihat-Shillong railway project was facing a lot of law and order problems from the Khasi Student Union.
The Union Minister said that the KHADC has to issue No Objection Certificate (NOC) for land to be acquired for the railway project.
However, the KHADC rejected the Meghalaya government’s request for a NOC to acquire over 47,000 square meters of land for implementation of the proposed rail project in Ri Bhoi district of the state.
The 108-km Byrnihat-Shillong railway project is in doldrums. Apart from the Byrnihat-Shillong project, the 22-km Tetelia-Byrnihat railway line has also remained a non-starter in Meghalaya despite making considerable progress in Assam, with 10 km of the Tetelia-Kamalajari section being completed and commissioned.
The Tetelia-Byrnihat railway project was first sanctioned for Rs 125 crore in 2019. Later, additional Rs 300 crore was allocated between 2020 and 2023.
The proposed Byrnihat-Shillong railway line if implemented will have a total of 100 bridges on the route.
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