Agartala, Jan. 8 (PTI): Tripura Chief Minister Biplab Kumar Deb on Saturday flagged-off Agartala-Jiribam Janashatabdi Express connecting Tripura with Manipur.
Railway Minister Ashwini Kumar Vaishnaw, DoNER Minister G Kishan Reddy, Union Minister of State for Social Justice and Empowerment Pratima Bhowmik, Manipur Chief Minister N Biren Singh took part in the programme through video conferencing.
The new train will ply thrice a week on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays and cover the 300 km distance of its journey in six hours, Northeast Frontier Railways (NFR) officials said.
The train has 10 coaches two AC chair cars, two second class chair car cum brake van and six second class chair cars.
As per the schedule, the Agartala-Jiribam (12097) Janashatabdi Express will depart from Agartala railway station at 6 am and reach Jiribam at 12 pm. On the way it will stop at Ambassa, Dharmanagar, New Karimganj, Badarpur and Arunachal (Silchar) stations before reaching Jiribam.
Inaugurating the programme, Deb stressed on the extension of rail connectivity up to Imphal at the earliest.
The new train service will largely benefit the people of both Tripura and Manipur, he added.
The Manipur Chief Minister said the introduction of the Agartala-Jiribam Janashatabdi Express is an important instance of connectivity between the two states.
Reddy said the Modi government is relentlessly working for the development of the north eastern region to build up a vibrant future.
He appreciated the Railways department for its sincere and dedicated efforts for development of rail connectivity in the two states which have strategic importance.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi pays special attention for the region. When I placed the proposal (for the Janashatabdi) before him, he asked me to complete the project at the earliest." Reddy added.