Aizawl: Fourth Northeastern State capital to be connected by Rail Link
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Mizoram’s capital Aizawl has become the fourth state capital in the North East to be connected with the rail network. It joins Dispur(Assam), Itanagar (Arunachal Pradesh) and Naharlagun near Itanagar (Arunachal Pradesh) to be connected with the national rail network of the Indian Railways.
Four other states of the North East, Gangtok (Sikkim), Imphal (Manipur), Kohima (Nagaland) and Shillong (Megahalaya) are yet to be connected with the rail network.
Bairabi–Sairang rail line project to connect Aizawl
The Indian railway launched the Rs 5,021.45 crore 51.38 km long Bairabi - Sairang rail project connecting Aizawl with the national rail network.
The last railway line in the state was at Bairabi in the Kolasib district, which is just 1.5 km from the Assam border.
The Bairabi—Sairang rail project connects Bairabi with Sairang. Sairang is considered a satellite town of Aizawl and is just 20km from the state capital.
The Northeast Frontier Railway successfully conducted a trial run on the Bairabi-Sairang rail track on 1 May 2025.
The track is expected to be inaugurated on 17 June 2025, pending clearance from the Commission of Railway Safety.
Status of Railway in North East
The government of India has accelerated the development of road and rail networks in the Northeastern states on a priority basis as the area is strategically very important.
Various projects have been launched in Assam, Sikkim, Nagaland, Arunachal Pradesh, Tripura and Manipur to lay new rail lines or double the existing rail tracks.
Due to protests in Meghalaya, the state's rail projects have been kept on hold.
Project to connect Sikkim
- The Sivok-Rangpo rail project is the first rail project to connect Sikkim with the rail network.
- The 45 km Sivok–Rangpo line will connect Sivok (West Bengal) with Rangpo in Sikkim and is expected to be completed by December 2027.
Project in Manipur
- The 111 km Jiribam–Imphal will connect Jiribam in Manipur to Imphal, the capital of Manipur.
About Northeast Frontier Railway
The Indian Railways has divided its operations into 17 Zones and 69 divisions.
The Northeastern Frontier Railway Zone was inaugurated on 15 January 1958.
It covers the eight Northeastern states of Sikkim, Assam, Nagaland, Manipur, Mizoram, Arunachal Pradesh, Tripura and Meghalaya.
Headquarters - Guwahati (Assam)
Division - Five - Katihar, Alipurduar, Rangiya, Lumding, Tinsukia.
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