Uttar Pradesh: 109-year-old rail track via Dudhwa to be shut

GORAKHPUR: The occasional whistle of the engine chugging on the 109-year-old rail track passing through the lush forests of the Dudhwa National Park is soon going to be a thing of past as it had emerged as a threat to wildlife. The 171-km rail route between Nanpara and Mailani that takes passengers through forests and agricultural fields will be shut after the inauguration of the Lakhimpur-Mailani broad gauge route later this month.
Also called the 'chhoti line', the NER route is being shut following a high court order for conservation of wild animals and forest. Railways is now planning to conserve the meter gauge line as a heritage one.
"In the last 20 years, around 100 animals have died in this section. While a major chunk of animals killed comprises spotted deer, but it includes tigers, rhinos, elephants, crocodiles and sloth bear etc," said Sanjay Pathak, director of Dudhwa Tiger Reserve.
30L to be hit by rail sec shutting
On the flip side, though, more than 30 lakh people living in villages between Nanpara and Mailani will be affected by the shutting of the rail section. For these villagers, the railway line is their lifeline, connecting them to cities. As of now, four trains ply on the Nanpara-Mailani section, which connects several interior villages to bigger towns.
According to NER chief public relations officer (CPRO) Pankaj Singh, the route through Dudhwa was completed in parts.
“The Gonda-Mailani rail route via Bahraich was inaugurated in 1911. Before that, the Mailani-Sharda section was completed in 1892.
The Sharda-Sohela section was completed in 1893 while Sohela-Sonaripur section was completed in 1894. Nanpara-Mihinpurwa route was completed in 1896 and Mihinpurwa-Katarnia Ghat route was completed in 1898.
Thereafter, Sonaripur-Kodiyalaghat was completed in 1911 but the Katarnia Ghat and Kodiayala Ghat section was completed after 1943. Before that, railways used to provide a ferry service between the two ghats,” said Singh.