Parliament Question: Expansion Plan of Dhubri Railway Station in Assam

GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF RAILWAYS LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 4395 TO BE ANSWERED ON 20.08.2025 EXPANSION PLAN OF DHUBRI RAILWAY STATION IN ASSAM 4395. MD. RAKIBUL HUSSAIN: Will the Minister of RAILWAYS be pleased to state: (a) whether the Government is aware that Dhubri Railway Station is of immense strategic importance and witnesses a hefty footfall due to its geographical importance of connecting Assam to the rest of the country and if so, the details thereof; (b) whether there are any plans to expand and modernise the said Railway Station to accommodate the increasing passenger traffic and improve railway services in the region and if so, the details thereof; (c) the details of the specific expansion plans including infrastructure upgrades, additional platforms/improved passenger amenities; and (d) whether any special provisions are proposed to boost freight transport via Dhubri Railway Station given its economic and logistical significance and if so, the details thereof? ANSWER MINISTER OF RAILWAYS, INFORMATION & BROADCASTING AND ELECTRONICS & INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY (SHRI ASHWINI VAISHNAW) (a) to (d) Dhubri Railway Station, located in the state of Assam, has been categorized as a NSG-4 station which serves approximately 1000 passengers daily. It has been identified for development under Amrit Bharat Station Scheme. The structural work of station building and platform shelters have been completed. The finishing works of station building, improvement of circulating area, waiting hall, toilet, platform no. 2 & 3, 12 m Foot Over Bridge and lifts have been taken up.To enhance customer experience and provide better amenities, Indian Railways has launched Amrit Bharat Station Scheme for redevelopment of stations with a long-term approach. The scheme involves preparation of master plans and their implementation in phases to improve the stations. The master planning includes: • Improvement of access to station and circulating areas • Integration of station with both sides of city • Improvement of station building • Improvement of waiting halls, toilets, sitting arrangement, water booths • Provision of wider foot over bridge/air concourse commensurate with passenger traffic • Provision of lift/escalators/ramp • Improvement /Provision of platform surface and cover over platforms • Provision of kiosks for local products through schemes like ‘One Station One Product’ • Parking areas, Multimodal integration • Amenities for Divyangjans • Better passenger information systems • Provision of executive lounges, nominated spaces for business meetings, landscaping, etc. keeping in view the necessity at each station The scheme also envisages sustainable and environment friendly solutions, provision of ballastless tracks etc. as per necessity, phasing and feasibility and creation of city centre at the station in the long term.So far, 1337 stations, including 50 stations located in the state of Assam, have been identified for development under this scheme. The names of stations identified for development under Amrit Bharat Station Scheme in the State of Assam are as following: No. of State Amrit Names of Amrit Stations Stations Assam 50 Amguri, Arunachal, Chaparmukh, Dhemaji, Dhubri, Dibrugarh, Diphu, Duliajan, Fakiragram Jn., Gauripur, Gohpur, Golaghat, Gosai gaon hat, Guwahati, Haibargaon, Harmuti, Hojai, Jagi Road, Jorhat Town, Kamakhya Jn, Kokrajhar, Lanka, Ledo, Lumding Jn, Majbat, Makum Jn, Margherita, Mariani Jn, Murkongselek, Naharkatiya, Nalbari, Namrup, Narangi, New Bongaigaon Jn, New Haflong, New Karimganj Jn, New Tinsukia Jn, North Lakhimpur, Pathshala, Rangapara North Jn, Rangiya Jn, Sarupathar, Sibsagar Town, Silapathar, Silchar, Simaluguri, Tangla, Tinsukia, Udalguri, Viswanath Chariali Development works at railway stations under Amrit Bharat Station Scheme in the state of Assam have been taken up at a good pace. Till now, phase-I works of 01 station (Haibargaon) in the state of Assam has been completed under this scheme. The works at other stations have also been taken up at good pace and progress of some of the stations is as given below:• Majpat station: The work of platform shelter, platform extension, train indication board, toilet, porch, improvement of circulating area and lighting have been completed. The works of lift and improvement of parking area have been taken up. • Rangapara North Junction station: The works of platform shelter has been completed. The works of station building, porch, improvement of circulating area, train indication board, lighting and tactile pathways have been taken up. • Tangla station: The work of platform shelters, platform extension and train indication board have been completed. The work of construction of toilet, porch and improvement circulating area,tactile pathways, lifts have been taken up. • Udalguri station: The work platform shelter, platform extension and train indication board have been completed. The work of construction of toilet, porch, improvement of circulating area, tactile pathways have been taken up. Further development / redevelopment / upgradation / modernisation of stations on Indian Railways is a continuous and ongoing process and works in this regard are undertaken as per requirement, subject to inter-se priority and availability of funds. The priority for development / redevelopment / upgradation / modernisation of stations is accorded to higher category of station over lower category of station while sanctioning and executing the works. Development / upgradation of railway stations is complex in nature involving safety of passengers & trains and requires various statutory clearances such as fire clearance, heritage, tree cutting, airport clearance etc. The progress also gets affected due to brownfield related challengessuch as shifting of utilities (involving water/sewage lines, optical fibre cables, gas pipe lines, power/signal cables, etc.), infringements, operation of trains without hindering passenger movement, speed restrictions due to works carried out in close proximity of tracks and high voltage power lines, etc. and these factors affect the completion time. Therefore, no time frame can be indicated at this stage. Development / upgradation / modernisation of stations including under Amrit Bharat Station Scheme is generally funded under Plan Head-53 ‘Customer Amenities’. The details of allocation and expenditure under Plan Head-53 are maintained Zonal Railway-wise and not work-wise, or station wise or state-wise. The state of Assam is covered under the jurisdiction of Northeast Frontier Railway. For the zone, an allocation of ₹ 554 crore has been made for the financial year 2025-26, out of which an expenditure (up to July, 2025) of ₹ 139 crore has been incurred so far. Further, Indian Railways is committed to run more trains on its network. However, introduction of new trains, increase in frequency of existing trains, extension of existing trains etc. on any route/section depends on various factors which include: • Capacity of that section, • Availability of path, • Availability of required rolling stock, • Availability of matching infrastructure for rolling stock, • Maintenance requirement of railway tracks and other assets Considering the above factors, presently 08 trains are serving Dhubri station connecting it inter alia to Alipurduar, Guwahati, Silghat Town.To increase the capacity of the rail network and hence to run more trains, Indian Railways have taken up network expansion works in a big way. As far as freight transport is concerned, Dhubri is the terminating station on Fakiragram-Dhubri section of Alipurduar division of Northeast Frontier Railway. No demand/proposal for freight loading/unloading at Dhubri station has been received in the last three years. *****