Shillong, Dec 10: The West Jaintia Hills unit of the Khasi Students’ Union (KSU) has reiterated the pressure group’s opposition to railways without a mechanism to prevent a surge of migrants it fears would be brought with the coming of trains.
This reaction follows the inclusion in the Union Budget 2024–25 of funds for final location surveys for two railway routes into the Jaintia Hills region – the 79km-long Jowai–Khliehriat–Chandranathpur line and the 135km Chaparmukh–Jowai line.
Addressing reporters, unit president Laitphar Syngkrem claimed that the public remains firmly against the project. “Even now, illegal migrants enter through vehicles. A railway line will only increase the inflow,” Syngkrem said.
He urged the government to heed public sentiment and reconsider the expansion plans, stating the union will “continue to oppose the project at all costs.”
