IMPHAL, April 11: Minister of State for Railways and Food Processing Industries, Ravneet Singh, has assured that all necessary activities are being undertaken to complete the Jiribam–Imphal railway line project. He made the statement in a written reply to Rajya Sabha MP Leishemba Sanajaoba, in connection with the issue raised during the Zero Hour session of Parliament held on February 3.
The Minister informed that the 111-km-long railway project is being implemented to connect Imphal to the Indian Railways network. The estimated cost of the project is Rs. 22,274.57 crore, out of which Rs. 14,423.00 crore had already been spent by March 31, 2024.
Providing an update on the progress, the Minister said that the Jiribam–Khongsang section (55.36 km) has been completed in two phases. The Jiribam–Vangaichungpao segment (11.80 km) was completed in February 2017, while the Vangaichungpao–Khongsang section (43.56 km) was finished in September 2022. Works on the remaining stretches—Khongsang–Noney (18.25 km) and Noney–Imphal (37.02 km)—are currently underway.
The Minister highlighted several challenges causing delays, including land acquisition, forest clearance, relocation of utilities, statutory approvals, difficult terrain, law and order issues, and adverse climatic conditions with limited working months. These factors, he noted, have affected the timely execution of the project.
Despite the hurdles, Singh reaffirmed the government’s commitment to completing the railway line at the earliest and stated that all possible efforts are being made to finish the remaining works.
