Landslides, blockade disrupt rail services in northeast
June 17th, 2010 - 4:52 pm ICT by IANSSilchar (Assam), June 17 (IANS) Rail services in southern Assam, Tripura, Manipur and Mizoram were suspended following heavy landslides and a three-day rail blockade called by a student body, officials said Thursday.
“Following torrential rains, landslides in five places in Assam’s North Cachar Hills district have disrupted the railway services since Tuesday,” Northeast Fronter Railway area manager B.K. Mishra told reporters here.
The meter gauge railway line from Assam’s Guwahati city passes through southern Assam connecting land-locked Tripura’s capital Agartala and parts of Manipur and Mizoram with the rest of India.
Railway officials and engineers are busy clearing the landslides near Jatinga, Longrangjao, Mahur, Wadringdisa and Daotuhaja in Assam.
Meanwhile, a 72-hour railway blockade called by the Indigenous Students Forum (ISF) that began Thursday has also hit train traffic.
“Fearing sabotage, we have suspended railway services in the region for three days,” Mishra said.
The ISF, a non-Dimasa ethnic group students and youth body, has been demanding bifurcation of the North Cachar Hills district into two separate districts.
A few months back the government announced the renaming of the district as ‘Dimahasao’, triggering protests by the non-Dimasa ethnic tribals.
Dimasas are the dominant tribe in North Cachar Hills district.
- Landslides disrupt rail services to Northeast - Jun 04, 2012
- Parts of northeast cut-off as train services suspended - Oct 10, 2011
- Successive shutdowns disrupt life in northeast - Jan 22, 2011
- Train services yet to be restored in northeast - Jun 10, 2012
- Railway services in northeast partially restored - Jul 25, 2012
- Rail services in northeast restored partially - Oct 07, 2010
- Rail services in northeast restored - Jul 03, 2010
- Passenger train services in northeast still disrupted - Jul 17, 2010
- Landslides disrupt rail services in parts of northeast - Jun 22, 2010
- Rail services in northeast still disrupted - Jun 29, 2010
- Rail services to Tripura, Mizoram disrupted - Jun 10, 2010
- Tripura, Mizoram facing shortage of food grain - Dec 16, 2010
- 'Another month to restore train services to northeast' - Jul 02, 2012
- Northeast road-rail links snapped, situation worsens - Jul 16, 2012
- Day 3: 2,500 train passengers still stranded in Assam - Jun 28, 2012
Tags: agartala, bifurcation, cachar, fronter, gauge railway, group students, guwahati, indigenous students, landslides, manipur, meter gauge, mishra, mizoram, north cachar hills, railway line, railway officials, railway services, silchar assam, students forum, train traffic