Dimapur-Kohima railway 50% complete, December 2029 target set

KOHIMA – The Dimapur-Kohima railway is now 50 per cent complete on the ground and is targeted for completion by December 2029, officials said during an inspection of the project on Saturday, according to an account of the visit seen by Nagaland.News. The team of Nagaland government officials and Northeast Frontier Railway (NFR) authorities visited work sites at Zubza, Piphema, Pherima and Molvom on November 14.

Advisor for Airway and Railway, Government of Nagaland, A. Pongshi Phom told the media that the project is targeted for completion by December 2029. The line will link Dimapur, the state’s commercial hub, with the capital Kohima.

Dimapur-Kohima railway progress in numbers

The Dimapur-Kohima New Railway Line Project was sanctioned in May 2007. Up to October 31, 2026, it had recorded 50 per cent physical progress and 45.98 per cent financial progress, with an expenditure of Rs 7,176.48 crore, according to the figures shared during the inspection.

The 78.42-kilometre route runs through difficult hill terrain, and much of it is being built underground or on bridges. Officials listed the main structures as:

• 20 tunnels, the longest measuring 6.62 kilometres
• 29 major bridges, the longest stretching 551.60 metres
• 151 minor bridges

The account of the visit did not include a section-wise timetable or say which stretches are expected to open next.

A long-delayed rail link to Kohima

The line has missed several earlier deadlines. Its first stretch, from Dhansiri in Assam to Shokhuvi in Chümoukedima district, opened to traffic in 2021, and the section up to Molvom was completed in March 2025. The Morung Express reported in 2025 that the Molvom–Pherima section had been scheduled to open in October 2026, with the remaining stretch to Zubza, near Kohima, due by December 2029.

Saturday’s inspection keeps the December 2029 date for the full Dimapur-Kohima railway. Earlier public estimates put the line’s length at about 82.5 kilometres, including the stretch in Assam; the account of the inspection gives the project length as 78.42 kilometres.

Zubza to Imphal extension under survey

Pongshi Phom also spoke about a proposed extension of the line from Zubza to Imphal in Manipur, for which survey-related work is under way. No cost or timeline for the extension was given.

At present, travel between Kohima and Imphal depends on National Highway 2, where a low-intensity blast near Khuzama damaged a retaining wall earlier this week. Officials said the completed railway is expected to strengthen connectivity, boost economic activity and open new opportunities for Nagaland and the wider Northeast.