Sight from the top is simply unbelievable: Man aboard Rajdhani Express from Sairang

Aizawl: When Lalrinmawia (67), a resident of Aizawl, boarded the Rajdhani Express from Sairang, on the western outskirts of the city, it was also the first time he had ever seen a train.He was on a familiarisation ride to Bairabi town, which borders Assam’s Hailakandi district. Prime Minister Narendra Modi formally flagged off Mizoram's first Rajdhani Express on Saturday.As the train chugged along the broadgauge line, Lalrinmawia sat inside the spacious metal coach, breathing in the picturesque hilly landscape that was all too familiar to him. But this time, he was seeing it from atop the tall bridges, some of them taller than the Qutub Minar, that connect Mizoram to the national railway grid.“The sight is simply unbelievable. Its worth the wait for so many years,” said Lalrimawia.It was not just him. People from all walks of life are ready to welcome the train’s entry into Mizoram with a sense of pride. They also hope that this will not only boost connectivity but also serve as a major economic impetus.The new railway line will offer respite to travellers who had to go through a gruelling vehicle route along the extremely dilapidated and dangerous road linking Aizawl and Silchar, which is regarded as Mizoram's lifeline.

K Vanlalruati, a local BJP leader, was elated on Saturday. “If I travel by road from Aizawl to Guwahati by maxicab, I have to pay Rs 1,700 and now, I will have to spend only Rs 300 in a sleeper class and Rs 800 in AC 3-tier and Rs. 1,130 in AC 2-tier, not to speak about the terrible road journey due to highly dilapidated road conditions,” he said.Mizoram on Saturday became the fourth state capital in the northeast to be connected to the national railway grid after PM Modi inaugurated the newly constructed 51.38-km-long Bairabi-Sairang railroad — 78 years after Independence.

Sanctioned in 2008-09, PM Modi laid its foundation in 2014.Mizoram’s lone Rajya Sabha member K Vanlalvena said on Thursday that the Central govt is planning to extend the under-construction Bairabi–Sairang railway line further across the state to reach Zochachhuah, a village on the India-Myanmar border.Vanlalvena told TOI that he had consistently advocated for the Centre's plans to extend the Mizoram railway line to the Myanmar border in Parliament. He had been raising questions and drawing the Centre’s attention to the state’s connectivity concerns.Calling the rail line the most affordable form of land transport, others on the train said it would significantly benefit Mizoram once the Bairabi-Sairang railway line is operational.