Guwahati/Agartala, Feb 7 (IANS): The Northeast Frontier Railway (NFR) is continuing hectic efforts to start running the long-expected electric trains in southern Assam and Tripura at the earliest, officials said on Friday.
An NFR official said that a trial run of the first goods train with an electric locomotive was successfully conducted on Thursday between southern Assam’s Badarpur station and Tripura’s Jirania station, 15 km north of Agartala railway station.
"Necessary infrastructural works including electrification were completed recently in southern Assam and Tripura. After the successful operation of some more goods trains with electric locomotives, the running of passenger trains with electric locomotives would start on the route. We are frantically trying to start running passenger trains with electric locomotives within a month or a maximum of two months," the official told IANS.
Tripura is now well connected with Delhi, Kolkata, Mumbai, Firozpur, Patna and other cities of the country by several express trains but passenger train services have been solely powered by diesel-powered engines.
A Rs 46 crore electrification project was launched in 2022 to connect Tripura with the national railway grid with electric trains.
The Tripura State Electricity Corporation Ltd (TSECL) would supply power to the railway electric transmission lines.
As the infrastructure with electric railway lines is getting ready, the iconic Vande Bharat Express trains will be extended up to Assam’s Silchar and Agartala within the next few months, the NFR official said.
Rajya Sabha member from Tripura Rajib Bhattacharjee earlier said that infrastructure is almost ready to operate Vande Bharat Express trains up to Silchar and Agartala and the remaining minor works would be completed very soon.
"Prime Minister Narendra Modi always gives priority to the development of northeastern states. Vande Bharat Express is one of his dream projects," he had said.
The Prime Minister flagged off Assam’s first Vande Bharat Express on May 29, 2023, connecting Guwahati with New Jalpaiguri (West Bengal). The Guwahati-New Jalpaiguri Vande Bharat Express train journey takes 5 hours and 30 minutes, as compared to the previous fastest train on the same route, which takes about 6 hours and 30 minutes.
The Guwahati-New Jalpaiguri Vande Bharat Express train operates six days a week.
The NFR operates in the northeastern states, seven districts of West Bengal, and five districts of north Bihar.