Northeast Frontier Railway adds special trains as Assam floods stall service

Guwahati: Floods have crippled rail lines in Assam. Water from the overflowing Dikhow River submerged the Simaluguri station, its yard, and the local railway colony. Northeast Frontier Railway shut down the Simaluguri-Namtiali and Simaluguri-Selenghat sections to keep people safe. Tinsukia Division services now face massive delays.

Crews are scrambling. Over 200 workers are currently focused on the Selenghat-Amguri section, performing track repairs and infrastructure strengthening around the clock. Engineering teams worked on the Sivasagar Town-Simaluguri route throughout Tuesday despite harsh weather.

Long-distance trains for Dibrugarh and Tinsukia are being diverted through the Rangiya-Rangapara-Dibrugarh line. Others are cancelled or short-terminated. To help, NFR added two new pairs of special trains running from July 22 to July 26. Train 05911 leaves Tinsukia at noon for Bhojo, returning as 05912 at 3 pm. Train 05913 heads from New Tinsukia to Moranhat at 4:45 pm, with the 05914 return service leaving Moranhat at 8 pm.

These supplement three existing pairs of specials already serving the Lumding-Mariani and Rangiya-Mariani junctions. NFR officials insist that passenger safety is the main goal. A spokesperson stated: "Passenger safety remains its top priority and assured that every effort is being made to complete the restoration work efficiently while ensuring safe train operations." Authorities continue to monitor the flooded corridors.