North East Frontier Railway cancels trains after Bihar's Agnipath protests

North East Frontier Railway (NFR) on Friday cancelled some trains due to violent protests in Bihar against Agnipath army recruitment scheme, and floods in Assam.

Six coaches of train number 15652 GuwahatiJammu Tawi Lohit Express were set ablaze by agitators around 6.10 AM on Friday at Mohiuddinnagar railway station in Bihar, NFR Chief Public Relations Officer (CPRO) Sabyasachi De said here.

However, no injuries to any of the 1,169 passengers on board were reported, he said.

NFR is operating helpline numbers at Guwahati: 03612731621, 03612731622, 03612731623, New Jalpaiguri: 9434085300, Kishanganj: 06456226794, and Katihar: 9608815880.

The trains Dibrugarh-Lalgarh Express, Kamakhya-Anand Vihar Express, Alipurduar Jn-Delhi Express and KamakhyaBhagat Ki Kothi Express will remain cancelled on Friday.

The Bhagat Ki KothiKamakhya Express of June 21 will also remain cancelled.

In Assam, due to damage to railway tracks by floodwaters between Nalbari and Ghograpar railway stations in Rangia division of NFR, several trains have either been cancelled or diverted via Kamakhya-Goalpara Town-New Bongaigaon route.

Trains that have been diverted are Silchar-Trivandrum Express, KamakhyaDelhi Brahmaputra Mail, Silghat Town-Tambaram Express, Silchar-Sealdah Kanchanjungha Express, Howrah-Dibrugarh Kamrup Express, Anand ViharKamakhya Northeast Express and ChandigarhDibrugarh Express.

The Silchar-Trivandrum Express will originate from Guwahati railway station.

The New Bongaigaon-Guwahati passenger on Friday and its corresponding train from Guwahati on Saturday will remain cancelled, De said.

Meanwhile, the Assam government has arranged for special flights between Guwahati and Silchar for people stranded due to the floods and landslides in the state which have disrupted connectivity with Barak Valley.

The special flights, arranged by the Assam Tourism Development Corporation (ATDC) in association with Fly Big, will start operating from June 18 at a fixed rate of Rs 4,000 per person, an official release said.