Parliamentary Standing Committee of the Railway ministry has expressed the view that the Central Government should provide more funds and attach maximum priority for ongoing projects in the North-East.

Standing committee chairman Basudev Acharya is of the view that the 14 per cent return criteria envisaged by Planning Commission for the development of railway network in the country should not be imposed in the region considering the backwardness of the region. He advocated that there should be no return criteria for railway projects in the region.

A 10-member team of Parliamentary Standing Committee visited Assam, Meghalaya and Tripura for on-the-spot review of ongoing railway projects and existing network in the three North-Eastern states. Mr Acharya revealed that the standing Committee would propose the Bogibill railway bridge and Rangiya railway project in Assam and extension of railway line up to South Tripura’s Sabroom be declared as national projects. He also stressed the need for conversion of various railway lines from metre to broad gauge. Mr. Acharya was also critical over poor condition of coaches now being used by the railways. He suggested immediate replacement of those coaches and improvement of other facilities. Moreover the Parliamentary Standing Committee would stick to ten per cent allocation of the Railway’s annual budget to North-eastern states to expedite the expansion of rail network in the region, Mr. Acharya informed. He assured that the proposed conversion of Lumding–Badarpur metre gauge into broad gauge will be completed by      March 2007, which will pave way  for conversion of the Kumarghat- Agartala line. “North-Eastern   states were denied of legitimate  right in terms of budgetary allocation,” he said.

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