The Bogibeel bridge connects the south bank of the Brahmaputra river in Assam’s Dibrugarh district with Silapathar in Dhemaji district, bordering Arunachal Pradesh.
GUWAHATI: On Christmas day, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will inaugurate Asia’s second-longest rail-road bridge, the Bogibeel Bridge.
The Bogibeel bridge, which connects Dibrugarh, Assam, on the south bank of the Brahmaputra, to Dhemaji in north Assam, was built at the cost of Rs 4,800 crore.
The Bogibeel Bridge, which was a part of the Assam Accord and sanctioned in 1997-98, is likely to play a crucial role in defence movement along the India-China border in Arunachal Pradesh.
The Tinsukia-Naharlagun Intercity Express will run five days a week.Bogibeel Bridge comes under infrastructure projects planned to enhance logistics in the Northeastern states.
The foundation stone of the project was laid by former prime minister HD Deve Gouda on January 22, 1997, while work commenced on April 21, 2002, under the Atal Bihari Vajpayee-led government.
The bridge will enhance the national security of the eastern region by facilitating swift movement of defence forces and their equipment. December 25 happens to be Atal Bihari Vajpayee’s birth anniversary.
The 4.9-km bridge will cut down the train-travel time between Tinsukia in Assam to Naharlagun town of Arunachal Pradesh by more than 10 hours.
The bridge reduces travel time from Assam to Arunachal Pradesh to four hours and will cut out the detour of over 170 km via Tinsukia.
The bridge will also reduce Delhi to Dibrugarh train-travel time by about three hours to 34 hours as against 37 hours presently.
