The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs, chaired by the Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi, yesterday has approved construction of 4-Lane Access-Controlled Greenfield connectivity from Gohpur on NH-15 to Numaligarh on 715 section including 15.79 Km. of Road cum Rail Tunnel under River Brahmaputra to be developed at a total capital cost of Rs.18,662 crore in Assam on Engineering procurement Construction  (EPC).

Currently, connectivity between Numaligarh on NH715 and Gohpur on NH-15 is 240 Km. from existing Kaliabhambhora road bridge near Silghat on NH-52 which takes 6 Hours passing through Numaligarh,  Kaziranga National park and Biswanath Town. To address these challenges, the project is proposed to be developed as 4-Lane Access-Controlled Greenfield connectivity  from Gohpur on NH-15 to Numaligarh with Road cum Rail tunnel below the river Brahmaputra river. This would be first underwater Road cum Rail tunnel in the India and 2nd in world. The project will provide significant benefit to Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland and other North -Eastern States. This will enhance the efficiency of freight movement, reducing logistics cost and driving socio-economic growth in the region.

The project alignment integrates with 02 major National Highways (NH-15 and NH-715)  and 02 Railway lines i.e. Rangia-Mukongselek Railway Section under Rangia Division of NFR on Gohpur Side and Furkating-Mariani loop line section under Tinsukia Division of NFR on Numaligarh side. The project providing seamless connectivity to key economic, social, and logistics nodes across Assam. Additionally, the project  will enhance multi-modal integration by connecting with 11 Economic Nodes, 03 Social Nodes, 02 Tourist nodes and 08 Logistic Nodes, providing enhanced connectivity with 04 Major Railway Station, 02 Airport, and 2 inland water way thereby facilitating faster movement of goods and passengers across the region.

Upon completion, the project will play a pivotal role in strategic considerations, regional economic growth, strengthening connectivity between major economic centers and opening new avenues for trade and industrial development. The project will also generate approximately 80 Lakhs person-days of direct and indirect employment, and will open new avenues of growth, development and prosperity in surrounding regions.

Map of Corridor:

Project Details

 

Feature	Details
Project Name	Construction of Twin Tube TBM road Underwater tunnel 2 Lane each under River Brahmaputra along with provision of Railway infrastructure in one of the tubes, in the state of Assam on EPC Mode with total length of project as 33.7 Km.
Corridor	Gohpur on NH-15 – Numaligarh on NH-715
Length (km)	33.7 Km.
Total Civil Cost (Rs Cr.)	11,982.36 Cr.
Land Acquisition Cost (Rs Cr.)	716.65
Total Capital Cost (Rs Cr.)	18,662.02
Mode	Engineering Procurement Construction  (EPC).
Project Length	Instant Project of Length 33.77 Km.
Twin Tube TBM Tunnel with Railway in one of the tubes	15.79 Km.
Total Road cut & cover	1.26 Km.
Total Rail cut & cover	4 Km.
Major Roads Connected	National Highways – NH-15 & NH715
Rail Line connected	Rangia-Mukongselek Railway Section under Rangia Division of NFR on Gohpur Side Furkating-Mariani loop line section under Tinsukia Division of NFR on Numaligarh side
Economic / Social / Transport Nodes Connected	Airports (02 ) : Dony Paulo Holongi Airport Itanagar and  Tezpur Airport Railway Stations (04) : Numaligarh Railway Station, Gohpur Railway Station, Golaghat Town Railway Station, Simaluguri Junction Inland Water way Terminals (02): Biswanath Ghat  Water way terminal, Tezpur Water way terminal Economic Nodes (11) : Numaligarh Industrial Area, Jorhat DIC, IIDC Titabor, Industrial Area Junakinagar, Industrial Estate Nagaon, IIDC Demow, Industrial Estate Sivasagar, IIDC Naltali, Industrial Area Dolabari, Mini Industrial Area Biswanath, MMLP Jogighopa. Social Nodes (03) : 1 Tribal district – Dima Hasao; 02 Aspirations Districts-Udalguri & Darrang Tourist Nodes  (02) : Kaziranga National Park  & Deopahar Archaeological Site
Major Cities / Towns Connected	Numaligarh, Tezpur, Gohpur  Dibrugarh in Assam  & Itanagar In Arunachal Pradesh
Employment Generation Potential	80 Lakhs Man-Days of Direct & In-direct
Annual Average Daily Traffic (AADT) in FY-25	Estimated at 4680 Passenger Car Units (PCU)

 

Project approval for underwater road rail tunnel enabling 4 lane greenfield connectivity between Gohpur and Numaligarh under EPC. Cabinet approved a 33.7 km 4 lane access controlled greenfield corridor between Gohpur (NH 15) and Numaligarh (NH 715) including a 15.79 km twin tube TBM underwater Road cum Rail tunnel with rail provision in one tube, implemented on an EPC basis. The scope covers civil works, land acquisition, short road and rail cut and cover sections, and integration with existing highways and railway sections to deliver multimodal connectivity to airports, inland waterways, railway stations and economic, social and tourist nodes, with estimated traffic and employment implications.