North East region will have better rail connectivity: Gohain

The North East region will have better rail connectivity now than before with expansion of double track railway lines and increase in the number of trains, Union Minister Rajen Gohain said today.
As per the direction of Prime Minister Narendra Modi the Railway Ministry has laid emphasis on better rail connectivity in the region to promote tourism and other sectors of the north-east, the Minister of State for Railways told PTI.
The Railway ministry will complete the double track project up to Guwahati via Goalpara within a short period of time, while efforts are on to expand the double track through Saraighat bridge in Guwahati via Rangia, said Gohain who is an MP from Assam.

For electric train traffic in Assam all the process have been completed and Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu has endorsed all the projects of the NE to connect all the capitals of the N-E states, he informed.
Rail connectivity between Silghat and Tezpur crossing through Kalia Bhumura Bridge on Brahmaputra has also been proposed by the Railway Ministry, he said.
Gohain further said that already 29 new trains have been introduced in the NE region and connectivity between two valleys Brahmaputra and Barak in Assam has improved.

Stating that the Railway Ministry has proposed to declare old Haflong station as a heritage station, Gohain said some tourist trains will be introduced shortly in the N-E states to uplift the tourism sector in the region.

Regarding the recruitment policy of N-F Railway, the minister said that the Ministry has chalked out a policy to recruit local youths in the grade III and IV posts through NE based examination.
Regarding a separate 24-hour Doordarshan channel for Assam, Gohain said he will request the Information and Broadcasting Ministry to open a channel for Assam like Arunprabha for Arunachal Pradesh.