July 28: Delhi has reassured the people of south Assam that one of the most important projects of Northeast Frontier Railway ? conversion of the 248-km Silchar-Lumding metregauge section into a 200-km broad gauge track ? will not be derailed.

Sontosh Mohan Dev, Union minister for heavy industries and Congress MP from Cachar district, this week ruled out the possibility of the Centre suspending work, under way since 1997, for conversion of the section on the pretext that it would not be economically viable.

Dev?s assertions should allay apprehensions triggered by reports that at least two broad gauge-conversion projects, among a package of 12 new schemes in the Northeast, would be put in cold storage in the wake of a review of ongoing schemes.

The Union minister said he wrote to Railway Board chairman J.P. Batra on July 18, seeking a clarification on whether the ongoing Silchar-Lumding gauge conversion scheme is one of the two projects that Indian Railways is planning to freeze temporarily.

The railway authorities, according to Dev, scotched speculation about the Silchar-Lumding gauge-conversion project being temporarily suspended.

It was declared a national project last year because of its importance as a transport infrastructure scheme for a remote area.

The minister made it clear that if the railways terminated the project, it would trigger a furore in the area. But, more significantly, he warned: ?The railways will have to negotiate suspension of this crucial project over my dead body.?

The progress of conversion work of the 103-year- old metre gauge track, known as the hill section, into a broad gauge line has been sluggish.

This is part of the Centre?s plan to establish a uni-gauge railway line structure throughout the country.

The project was earlier targeted to go on steam by 2006, but its deadline was revised to 2009, resulting in cost escalation from the original Rs 696 crore to Rs 1,494 crore.

The NF Railway claims that this project, when completed, would revolutionise the transport sector in the region.

The movement of goods and passengers would be accelerated as mandatory trans-shipments at Lumding would be done away with.

The number of tunnels in this section would also be reduced from its original 37 to a revised 20.

Till now, as much as Rs 372 crore has been spent on the project, including building bridges and tunnels.