Centre Approves India’s First Underwater Road-Rail Tunnel Under the Brahmaputra
The Central Government has approved a ₹18,662-crore project to build a four-lane, high-speed route between Gohpur and Numaligarh in Assam. This ambitious project includes India’s first-ever underwater road-and-rail tunnel beneath the Brahmaputra River.
Currently, the 240-km journey between Numaligarh (NH-715) and Gohpur (NH-15) takes nearly six hours. The existing route passes through Kaziranga National Park and Biswanath town. The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs officially cleared this new initiative on Saturday.
A Landmark Engineering Project
The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways confirmed that the four-lane route will be built using the Engineering-Procurement-Construction (EPC) model. This will be the first underwater road-and-rail tunnel in India and only the second project of its kind in the world. Once finished, the corridor will significantly cut travel time and improve connectivity across Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, and Nagaland.
Boosting Connectivity and the Economy
The project is designed to provide seamless access to major economic and social hubs across Assam. The corridor will connect:
- 11 Economic Hubs
- 3 Social Hubs
- 2 Tourist Destinations
- 8 Logistics Centres
Additionally, the project will enhance multi-modal transport by linking four key railway stations, two airports, and two inland waterways. This integration is expected to make freight transport more efficient and lower overall logistics costs. Officials believe this will drive economic growth and create new opportunities for trade and industry in the Northeast.
Strategic Importance for the Northeast
This infrastructure push comes at a time of increased strategic focus on India’s Northeast region. Just one day before this approval, India reached another milestone by landing a C-130J aircraft on a new emergency landing strip on the Dibrugarh-Moran highway.
Located near the Line of Actual Control (LAC) with China, these emergency sites are built to handle frontline combat jets and transport planes during a crisis. Together, these projects highlight the government’s goal of strengthening both regional connectivity and national security infrastructure.
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