Dimapur Railway Station, which was established in October 1903 grew and became the second highest revenue earner for the Northeast Frontier Railways (NFR). This does not include the newly opened Shokhuvi Railway station. Passenger volume at Dimapur was reported to around 10,000 per day for both outgoing and incoming travellers.
Quite understandably, there have been consistent demands for more trains and seats due to increasing number of people travelling by trains to and from Dimapur.
However, the NFR has been meting out shoddy service to travelers at Dimapur Railway Station as this has remained unchallenged by the state government. In other states, governments take such matters very seriously and MPs raise issues in parliament. Connectivity is crucial for travel especially for business persons or those in need of specialized medical treatment in Guwahati. It may be pointed out Nagaland Express was introduced specially for Dimapur. The train used to depart Dimapur around 6 am and arrive Guwahati between 10:30 and 11 am. Those having some work are able to return back the same day either with BG Express or Inter-City Express, making it convenient for travellers to complete their work and return the same day.
Instead of increasing quota, the NFR has shifted three trains introduced at Dimapur- Jan Shatabi Express in 1996 taken to Jorhat in 1998. BG Express in 1998 and Nagaland Express in 2011 were both taken to Mariani and Ledo respectively in 2020.
For around 10,000 passengers (incoming and outgoing), Dimapur Railway station has a quota of only 1128 seats. The quota for passengers of Dimapur is woefully inadequate if seen from the figures made available to Nagaland Post from the NFR. As per the data, the total quota of seats made available at Dimapur from all ten passenger trains is 1128 seats.
Seats are unlimited at trains to and from Shokhuvi . The 15817 Donyi Polo Express(arr. 9am and dep 5:45 pm) –05605 Daily and Shokhuvi Special(Tue/Wed/Thu/Fri- arr.11.55 pm and dep.5:30 am)
At present, rail connectivity between Dimapur and Guwahati remains inconvenient and the schedules are not suitable as most trains depart Dimapur at odd hours between midnight and early morning and arriving in Guwahati late in the evening .
The only relatively convenient daytime option is the BG Express train, which leaves Dimapur at around 9:30 am and reaches Guwahati at around 3:20 pm. However, passengers who go for work or business meetings, hospital appointments, or official work cannot return the same day.
This Reporter spoke with several passengers at Dimapur railway station where many pointed out that Guwahati is the commercial and financial hub of the Northeast and many traders routinely travel for banking, procurement, logistics coordination, and regulatory work.
However, they lamented that after Nagaland Express was shifted to Ledo, they have to either travel a day in advance or opt for costly and tiring road journeys.
A patient speaking with this Reporter, said he cannot take a patient for appointments since they arrive Guwahati late evening at around 4 p.m. Also, they would not be able to return the same day. The evening train available to return back was the BG Express which leaves Guwahati by 2 p.m.
Another businessman stated that rail timings do not match the real needs of passengers. He added that Dimapur, despite being among the top revenue-generating stations under Northeast Frontier Railway (NFR) with heavy daily footfall, continues to be underserved in terms of passenger-friendly scheduling.
He further stated that returning from Guwahati to Dimapur was not a major issue due to the availability of several trains, but travelling out of Dimapur remained the main concern.
Apart from passengers, railway officials also acknowledged the need for an early morning train to Guwahati, asserting that it would not only benefit passengers but also generate additional revenue for NFR.