Prime Minister Narendra Modi is set to lay the foundation stone for Sikkim’s inaugural railway station, Rangpo Station, on February 26, as announced by the Deputy Railway Manager of Alipurduar. Additionally, he will inaugurate nearly 550 Amrit railway stations on the same day.
Amarjeet Agrawal, the DRM, highlighted the strategic importance of Rangpo station from both a tourism and defense perspective for Sikkim and India. He explained that Sikkim did not previously have a railway line and that the project has been divided into three phases: Sevoke to Rangpo in the first phase, Rangpo to Gangtok in the second, and Gangtok to Nathula in the third.
“This is the third mode of connectivity for the people of Sikkim. So far, people have been traveling here by road and airway. This project was initially slated for completion by 2024, but due to external factors like floods and landslides, the timeline has been extended to 2025,” added the DRM Alipurduar.
Mohinder Singh, the project director, explained that the Sevoke-Rangpo project is a 45-kilometer-long rail line, with three and a half kilometers in Sikkim and the remaining in West Bengal. The project comprises fourteen tunnels, thirteen major bridges, and nine minor bridges, with completion currently at sixty to sixty-five percent. Track work is set to commence next month.
Singh further elaborated, “Eighty-six percent of the alignment of this project is in the tunnel, and digging out the tunnel is challenging work; it’s not easy due to the weak rock formations. We are able to dig fifteen meters per month.”
Regarding the Teesta Bazar station, Singh mentioned that it could potentially be an underground railway station, making it the first of its kind in the Indian Railways’ broad gauge network. The station’s platform is six hundred and twenty meters long, capable of accommodating a full-length train. Six excess tunnels have been constructed for emergency evacuation purposes.
“The Teesta Bazar station is very relevant because it connects Darjeeling to Gangtok, making it convenient for passengers traveling to either destination,” added Singh.