Prime Minister Narendra Modi would inaugurate Asia’s second longest rail-cum-road bridge at Assam today on the eve of Christmas.

At 4.94 km, the construction of the Bogibeel rail-cum-road bridge over Brahmaputra River was started way back in 2002 when Atal Behari Vajpayee was the Prime Minister. Foundation stone to the project was laid in 1997 by the then prime-minister H.D. Deve Gowda. On 03rd December this year, a goods train was run on a trial-run on this track. The over-all length of 32 km extends as a three-way lane above and a two-way rail-track below.

Construction took 16 long years to complete and the Prime Minister would be throwing it open to the public as a ‘Christmas’ gift. This project is said to be the ‘dream project’ for the entire North-East region as it is believed that the travelling time to travel between Tinsukia in Assam and Naharlagun in Arunachal Pradesh is likely to get reduced by more than 10 hours thanks to the new rail-cum-road bridge.

The construction, which had cost Rs.5920 crores to the exchequer, is likely to aid Defence forces in a huge manner as armaments can be transported easily and with less cost. Bogibeel road-cum-rail bridge is expected to be a boon to Dibrugarh, which might soon become a busy commercial hub as Guwahati, locals say.