North-eastern province of the country has remained away from other parts of the country due to poor transportation connectivity. Now, the government is trying to connect north-eastern states of India with other states. While the aviation sector is certainly witnessing major developments, the railway network is also on the verge to get bolstered for once and all. In a recent development, it has been confirmed that the Sivok-Rangpo railway line between West Bengal and Sikkim has now seen a major breakthrough. Officials confirm that an evacuation tunnel along with the main tunnel is successfully bored on this route.
Chief Public Relations Officer of Northeast Frontier Railways Sabyasachi De said that this new rail link project is about 45 km long and is characterised by 14 tunnels, 13 major bridges, 10 minor bridges, and 4 new stations.
About 38 km of the entire project alignment is passing through tunnels and 63 per cent of tunnelling work has already been completed.
"At present, all the activities related to the construction of tunnels, bridges, and station yards are going on a war footing basis to complete the project by end of next year," he added.
`Tunnel No. 11`, located in Kalimpong district of West Bengal, was bored on Saturday in presence of the Project Director, Chief General Manager, and other officers of Ircon International Limited, Northeast Frontier Railway, Amberg Engineering (Detail Design Consultancy) team, and construction agency ABCI Infrastructure Pvt. Ltd. along with local administration.
The length of main tunnel is 3.2 km and of evacuation tunnel is 960 m, located between Tarkhola and Tumlangkhola in Kalimpong.
The tunnel traverses through vulnerable and challenging geological conditions of the lesser Himalayas. Like all other tunnels in this Sivok-Rangpo rail project, to counter the vulnerability of the groundmass, the latest and most sophisticated tunnelling technology, i.e., the New Austrian Tunnelling Method has been adopted.
"Not only the top class and well-experienced engineers from India but also highly experienced foreign engineers are also involved in this project," officials said. This railway line would cover Darjeeling district and Kalimpong district of West Bengal and Sikkim`s Pakyong.
With inputs from IANS
