Cabinet approves India's first road-cum-rail tunnel under Brahmaputra River in Assam

New Delhi: The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, has approved the construction of India's first 34-km-long twin-tube underwater road-cum-rail tunnel between Gohpur and Numaligarh in Assam at a total capital cost of Rs 18,662 crore. Addressing mediapersons, Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said on Saturday that the first under-river tunnel in India was constructed in Kolkata under the Hooghly River, and work is currently underway on the first undersea tunnel for the Ahmedabad-Mumbai bullet train project.

Officials said that while the tunnel under the Hooghly River is meant for metro operations, the proposed Gohpur-Numaligarh project will be the first under-river twin tunnel in the country where both rail and road transport will operate side by side. "Currently, connectivity between Numaligarh on NH 715 and Gohpur on NH-15 is 240 Km from the existing Kaliabhambhora road bridge near Silghat on NH-52, which takes 6 hours passing through Numaligarh, Kaziranga National Park, and Biswanath Town," a government press note said. "To address these challenges, the project is proposed to be developed as a 4-Lane Access-Controlled Greenfield connectivity from Gohpur on NH-15 to Numaligarh with road-cum-rail tunnel below the river Brahmaputra," it added.

Talking about the benefits, it stated, "This would be the first underwater road-cum-rail tunnel in India and second in the world. The project will provide significant benefits to Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland and other North -Eastern States." "This will enhance the efficiency of freight movement, reducing logistics cost and driving socio-economic growth in the region," it added. Officials said that the project alignment integrates with two major National Highways (NH-15 and NH-715) and two Railway lines, which include Rangia-Mukongselek Railway Section under Rangia Division of NFR on Gohpur Side and Furkating-Mariani loop line section under Tinsukia Division of NFR on Numaligarh side. According to the officials, the project will provide seamless connectivity to key economic, social, and logistics nodes across Assam. "Additionally, the project will enhance multi-modal integration by connecting with 11 Economic Nodes, 3 Social Nodes, 2 Tourist nodes and 8 Logistic Nodes, providing enhanced connectivity with 4 major railway stations, 2 airports, and 2 inland waterways, thereby facilitating faster movement of goods and passengers across the region," the press note said. "Upon completion, the project will play a pivotal role in strategic considerations, regional economic growth, strengthening connectivity between major economic centres, and opening new avenues for trade and industrial development," it added. Highlighting new opportunities, it stated, "The project will also generate approximately 80 lakhs person-days of direct and indirect employment, and will open new avenues of growth, development and prosperity in surrounding regions."