Agartala, August 28: Tripura reached a historic milestone yesterday as Power Minister Ratanlal Nath inaugurated the newly installed 132 kV transmission lines and feeder bays at Agartala Railway Station. The ₹58.33 crore project, implemented by the Tripura State Electricity Corporation Limited (TSECL), has enabled the complete electrification of the state’s 271-km railway network, replacing diesel operations with electric trains.
As part of the project, railway traction substations (TSS) in Kumarghat, Udaipur, and Teliamura were successfully linked through electricity connections from PK Bari (Kumarghat), Banduar (Udaipur), and Gamaitila (Teliamura) respectively covering a total stretch of 271 km. By pressing an electronic button, the minister launched the project, calling it “a shining day in Tripura’s history.” He said electric train operations would ensure smoother and faster movement, reduce travel time, promote eco-friendly transport, and boost trade, tourism, and overall economic growth.
Recalling the state’s railway journey, Nath noted that trains first reached Dharmanagar in 1964, Agartala after 44 years, and Sabroom in 2019. He informed that broad gauge work has been completed, double-line surveys up to Agartala are over, while the Agartala–Sabroom survey is under consideration. Nationwide, India has 69,500 km of broad-gauge lines, of which 68,600 km have already been electrified something he credited to the efforts of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Nath also announced that under the Amrit Bharat Station Scheme, Agartala, Udaipur, Kumarghat, and Dharmanagar will get modernized stations, and plans are underway to introduce the Vande Bharat Express in Tripura.
Highlighting the state’s power sector expansion, Nath shared comparative figures:
- 132 kV substations increased from 12 to 20
- 132 kV transmission lines from 185 km to 984 km
- Substations from 35 to 70
- 33 kV lines from 896 km to 1,436 km
- 11 kV lines from 15,748 km to 19,972 km
- LT lines from 22,888 km to 34,135 km
- Underground cabling from 95 km to 4,087 km
He said Agartala city is being fully covered with underground cabling, with Khowai and Dharmanagar next in line. Tripura’s national highway length has also grown from 199 km to 2,923 km. Presently, the state has 10.38 lakh electricity consumers and a demand of 385 MW. Nath urged people to adopt the Prime Minister’s Surya Ghar Muft Bijli Yojana to secure the state’s future energy needs.
The event also saw addresses by Chief Whip of the Assembly Kalyani Saha Roy, Agartala Municipal Corporation Mayor and MLA Deepak Majumdar, Power Secretary Abhishek Singh, and TSECL MD Biswajit Basu. The welcome address was delivered by Ranjan Debbarma, General Manager (Transmission), TSECL. Among those present were MLAs Abhishek Debroy and Mina Rani Sarkar, IRCON Ltd. GM Devendra Sohaya, AMC Mayor-in-Council Harisadhan Debnath, social workers Manish Deb and Ashim Bhattacharjee, among others. A documentary on the project was screened, and Divisional Electrical Engineer Prakash Chandra Mina extended the vote of thanks.
