The Union Cabinet is set to give approval to the construction of a 160-km high-speed corridor connecting Shillong with Silchar to be set up on a greenfield alignment at a cost of Rs 25,000 crore, making it one of the biggest infrastructure projects in the Northeast. The announcement is likely to be made shortly.
Once completed, the high-speed corridor would reduce the travel time between the two towns to around four hours and will also help ease travel between Assam, Mizoram, Manipur and Tripura. The four-lane project was conceived in 2017 as part of the central government’s Bharatmala programme. It is anticipated that the new route will accelerate the region’s economic growth. According to sources, it will be the ideal remedy for the present problems that travellers have on their way to Silchar and other NE states, where poor road conditions and landslides—especially along the Sonapur-Ratacherra stretch—cause significant inconveniences.
