AGARTALA, July 25 (TIWN): A joint team of the state Public Works Department and the Northeast Frontier Railway (NFR) was formed today in a meeting of PWD minister Badal Choudhury and NFR Chief Engineer (constructions) Harpal Singh. A delegation of the NFR comprising of Chief Engineer (constructions) Harpal Singh and Deputy Chief Engineer Rajveer Singh visited ongoing construction works of the Agartala-Sabroom railway extension project in Tripura today. They met PWD minister Choudhury earlier on the day bat his office in the civil secretariat and informed him that the Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF) had cleared the project.

 A small patch of land in the alignment which came inside the periphery of Trishna wildlife sanctuary in Belonia is still waiting for forest clearance. Speaking to reporters later his afternoon, the minister said that the NFR authorities expressed strong hopes of getting the forest clearance soon.

The minister also said that the joint committee of the PWD and NFR would henceforth figures out locations of crossings and brides ovet certain rural roads built under the PMGSY after the railway alignment was finalized. The committee would also look after the connectivity between rail stations and main roads in different areas of the state.