Four MLAs cutting across political lines urge Railways to set up division at Dharmanagar

Four legislators from North Tripura and Unakoti districts, cutting across party lines, have jointly urged Union Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw to establish a separate railway division at Dharmanagar, the headquarters of the North Tripura district citing its strategic location, land availability and development potential.

In a letter dated June 30, the four MLAs — Sailendra Chandra Nath from CPIM, Islam Uddin from CPIM, Birajit Sinha from Congress also CLP leader and Philip Kumar Reang of Tipra Motha Party — said the demand for a railway division at Dharmanagar was long pending and deserved consideration.

Referring to the announcement made in Parliament on February 18, 2014, by the then Railway Minister D V Sadananda Gowda regarding the creation of three new railway divisions at Silchar, Gulbarga and Jammu, the legislators said only the Jammu Railway Division had since been sanctioned and inaugurated on January 6, 2025.

They said the proposed Silchar Railway Division did not materialise due to technical reservations raised by the then General Manager of Northeast Frontier Railway, while the Gulbarga proposal was dropped following the findings of an evaluation committee.

Against this backdrop, the MLAs requested the Railway Ministry to consider Dharmanagar as a suitable location for a new railway division.

According to the letter, Dharmanagar has been connected to the railway network since 1964 and serves as the gateway to Tripura. It is located about 53 km from Assam, around 109 km from Mizoram and about 96 km from the Bangladesh border, making it suitable for railway administration and operations in the northern part of the state.

The legislators also said the Railway Department already possesses around 56.37 hectares of land acquired during the establishment of Dharmanagar railway station and that around 500 hectares of adjoining land could be acquired for future expansion.

They further said the proposed railway division would benefit nearly 15 lakh people living in North Tripura and Unakoti districts by generating employment, improving railway services and strengthening regional connectivity.

The letter added that a Detailed Project Report had reportedly been prepared for a proposed railway route connecting Dharmanagar, Kailasahar, Kamalpur, Khowai, Mohanpur, Agartala and Sabroom.

Copies of the representation were forwarded to Chief Minister Manik Saha, Tripura East MP Kriti Devi Debbarman, Rajya Sabha MP Rajib Bhattacharjee and the General Manager of Northeast Frontier Railway.