The Tetelia-Byrnihat Line is a planned railway project in

Assam Assam (, , ) is a state in Northeast India, northeastern India, south of the eastern Himalayas along the Brahmaputra Valley, Brahmaputra and Barak River valleys. Assam covers an area of . It is the second largest state in Northeast India, nor ...

and

Meghalaya Meghalaya (; "the abode of clouds") is a states and union territories of India, state in northeast India. Its capital is Shillong. Meghalaya was formed on 21 January 1972 by carving out two districts from the Assam: the United Khasi Hills an ...

, India, to improve connectivity and boost the region's economy.

History

In the 19th century, the Cherra Companyganj State Railways had a station called Tharia in Meghalaya, connected to Companyganj in Bangladesh, but it closed after an earthquake damaged the line. In the late 1970s, there was an attempt to build a railway from Guwahati to Byrnihat in Meghalaya, but local opposition stopped the project before any rails were laid.

Railway in Meghalaya

Existing

* Mendipathar–Guwahati line, total 131 km long with 20 km in Meghalaya connects Meghalaya’s

North Garo Hills North Garo Hills is an administrative district in the state of Meghalaya in India. The district headquarters are located at Resubelpara. The district occupies an area of 1,113 km2 and has a population Population is a set of humans or ...

to India's rail network, operational since 2014. (first rail line in Meghalaya).

Under-construction

* Tetelia-Shillong lineis divided into two main phases: ** Tetelia-Byrnihat line, 22 kilometers (14 miles) railway line from Tetelia Junction in Assam to Byrnihat in Meghalaya, project was on hold for a long time because local groups had bene protesting against illegal immigration. Despite these challenges, 10 kilometers of the Tetelia– Kamalajari section have been completed. Teteliya-Kamalajari (10.15 km) operation in May 2025 but Kamalajari-Byrnihat (11.35 km) completion deadline officially not yet set as of May 2025 as work was stopped by Khasi Stuent Union in 2017 and remains stopped since then,NFR construction update
nfrlyconstruction.org, May 2025. however 85% complete in March 2025 with speculative target completion by 2026. ** Byrnihat-Shillong line: 108 kilometers (67 miles) from Byrnihat to Shillong, the capital of Meghalaya, with 100 bridges with the longest being 701 meters, 10 stations enroute (Byrnihat, Sohkhwai, Lailad, Umsong, Umar, Nongsder, Kyrdemkulai, Umroi, Umpling, and New Shillong), 31 tunnels totaling 39.06 kilometers making up 36.03 percent of the rail's length with longest tunnel 4.14 kilometers long. As of May 2025, Khasi Student Union has caused problem and stopped work since 2017 while DC and CM have taken no action despite repeated reminders, and

Khasi Hills Autonomous District Council Khasi Hills Autonomous District Council (KHADC) is an autonomous district council in the state of Meghalaya in India. It covers West Khasi Hills district, Eastern West Khasi Hills district, South West Khasi Hills district, East Khasi Hills dis ...

has not handover the land to railway despite receiving Rs 209.37 crore in 2017, even though DPR was ready in 2024 and construction may begin in 2026 only if troublemakers make way. * Shillong–Tura line, ₹18,000 crore 220 km long via

Nongstoin Nongstoin (IPA: ˈnɒŋˌstɔɪn) is the headquarters of West Khasi Hills district in the state of Meghalaya in India. As of the 2011 census, it had a population of 28,742. Geography Nongstoin is located at . It has an average elevation of 14 ...

to Tura in

West Garo Hills West Garo Hills is an administrative district in Garo Hills of the state of Meghalaya in India. Tura town is the administrative headquarters of the district. The district occupies an area of 3714 km². In 2011, its population was 643,291. A ...

with 30+ tunnels in Garo Hills, feasibility study was completed in 2025 but awaiting funding approach for construction. * Dawki–Jowai line, 50 km link within

West Jaintia Hills district West Jaintia Hills (Pron: ˈʤeɪnˌtɪə) is an administrative District in the state of Meghalaya in India. The united district (Jaintia Hills District) was created on 22 February 1972 and occupied an area of 3819 km2. It had a population of 27 ...

from

Dawki Dawki or Dauki is a town in West Jaintia Hills district, Meghalaya, India. Geography It is located at , on the border between India and Bangladesh. Dawki Border-crossing Dawki Integrated Check Post or ''Dawki border crossing'' is on Dawki-Tam ...

land port to Jowai near

Bangladesh–India border The Bangladesh–India border, known locally as the Radcliffe line, is an international boundary, international border running between the republics of Bangladesh and India. Six Divisions of Bangladesh, Bangladeshi divisions and five States and ...

is proposed in "Northeast Vision 2040" but has not been surveyed yet as of 2025.

Proposed

* Mawlynnong–Cherrapunji line, ~25 km link from

Mawlynnong Mawlynnong is a village in the East Khasi Hills district of the Meghalaya state in North East India. It is notable for its cleanliness and also was chosen by Discover India magazine as Asia's cleanest village. The village comes under the Pynursl ...

Cherrapunji Cherrapunji () - popularly known as, or Sohra - it's original native and official name, is a sub-divisional town (Proposed District) East Khasi Hills district in the Indian state of Meghalaya. It was the traditional capital of ''ka hima Sohra'' ...

via scenic route through

East Khasi Hills East Khasi Hills is an administrative district in the state of Meghalaya in India. The district headquarters are located at Shillong. The district occupies an area of 2,748 km2 and has a population of 825,922 (as of 2011). , it is the most ...

was proposed in 2023 for tourism was, but no formal study has been conducted as of 2025. * Nongstoin–Mahendraganj line, ~25 km link from

to Mahendraganj in Mgahlaya on Bangladesh Border as potential Trans-Asian Railway (TAR) spur.

References

{{reflist