5.10.09

Railways to connect Sikkim & Bhutan


The railway network in the North Bengal hills is set to get wider, with railway minister Mamata Banerjee announcing an ambitious plan that links new destinations in Bengal, Sikkim and neighbouring Bhutan. The announcements came on Sunday at inauguration programmes at New Jalpaiguri and Siliguri railway stations, a few days after the Siliguri municipal board had slipped out of Mamata’s grasp. “Next week I will lay the foundation stone for the Sevoke-Rangpo railway link and work will start in another seven days,” she said at the beginning of her two-day roller coaster trip of North Bengal. Around Rs 1,300 crore will be spent on the project, stretching the rail network by 53.5 km, from Sevoke in West Bengal to Rangpo, the gateway to Sikkim. For the last few years, Sikkim chief minister Pawan Chamling has been trying to push Sikkim into the railway map. But that was not all. Mamata’s grand plan for the eastern Himalayas links a number of important trading towns and tourist destinations. The other planned routes are Mirik-Gangtok, Hasimara-Phuentsholing in Bhutan and Chalsa-Jaldhaka, passing through the north Bengal forests. Once completed, two ends in the eastern Himalayas — Rangpo and Phuentsholing — will be brought within the railway network. The boost in connectivity should also spur economic activity and tourism initiatives, which are often hamstrung when roads are cut off because of landslides in the monsoons. Siliguri station will be declared a heritage station and linked to Bagdogra airport via a bus service, Mamata announced.

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