Silchar: A civil society group has urged members of parliament (MPs) from the region to press for early clearance of the proposed Lanka-Moinarbond railway project.Dr Syama Prasad Mookerjee Memorial Swartha Suraksha Parishad expressed disappointment that the Rs 15,000-crore project was not included among infrastructure proposals cleared by Union Cabinet on Wednesday.Parishad president Haran Dey termed its omission “a matter of regret”, especially as Cabinet approved other railway projects.Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs approved four multitracking projects in West Bengal, Odisha, Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh, adding about 410 km to the railway network. It also cleared four-laning of Muzaffarpur-Sitamarhi-Sonbarsa section of NH-22 in Bihar at a capital cost of Rs 3,590.73 crore.Dey said the delay in approving Lanka-Moinarbond project was disappointing, given its importance as an alternative rail link for southern Assam and neighbouring northeastern states.He urged MPs from the Barak Valley, Tripura, Mizoram and Manipur to approach Prime Minister Narendra Modi.“The railway minister has already been approached several times. The MPs of Barak Valley, Tripura, Mizoram and Manipur should now come together and meet the PM to seek his intervention for the project,” Dey said.He said the issue could also be raised through Northeast MPs’ Forum. Parishad has written to several parliamentarians, including forum president Dilip Saikia, but has received no response so far, he claimed.The proposed line is intended to provide alternative connectivity for southern Assam, Tripura, Mizoram and Manipur, which remain dependent on the existing rail corridor.
