Rain, Landslides Affect Road, Rail Links in Four Northeastern States

Rain and landslides continued to wreak havoc in the hill section of the Northeast Frontier Railway (NFR).

People try to clear debris after a boundary wall of Assam Engineering Institute (AEI) collapsed due to heavy rainfall, in Guwahati, Saturday night,

Photo: PTI

The situation in the hill section of the Northeast Frontier Railway (NFR) has further deteriorated as rain and landslides continued to batter the region, affecting the Lumding-Badarpur route of NFR, an official said on Monday.

The Lumding-Badarpur section in Assam is the only route that connects Tripura, Mizoram, Manipur, and the southern part of Assam with the rest of the country. This rail link has been cut off for three days.

The debris from the hills has completely engulfed the Haflong station. A train on railway tracks got tilted due to landslides, pictures of which have gone viral on social media.

Sabyasachi De, CPRO of NFR, said the landslides occurred in 53 locations. The Railways could clear the debris and restore the tracks at only 11 locations.

De said: "These are the places where landslides happened but the impact was not felt much. However, there are multiple locations where the foundation of the railway tracks got washed away due to landslides. Some of such areas are stretched up to 100 meters making it difficult for the railway staff to restore the track."

Meanwhile, the Met Department has issued fresh alerts for Assam and Meghalaya. There is a forecast of further rain in these two states, making it difficult for the Railways to plan the restoration of train services.

Stranded and disconnected

The road connectivity to the above states was also disrupted due to severe landslides in multiple locations in Meghalaya. Thousands of vehicles were stranded on the road as the boulders and mud blocked the national highway.

Superintendent of Police of East Jaintia Hills district, Jagpal Singh, said on Monday that vehicles were plying through a one-way route as some of the debris could not be cleared. "There is heavy traffic on the highway," he added.

The police officer has also warned that continuous rain could further worsen the situation.