Northeast Frontier Railway (NFR) achieved a significant milestone in the Sivok–Rangpo Railway Project on March 12, with the successful breakthrough of Tunnel No. 8 — a 4.148 km tunnel with an additional adit of 1.010 km — completed jointly with IRCON International Limited under challenging geological conditions.
The tunnel was excavated through weak and fractured rock formations in difficult hilly terrain near the NH-10 corridor, making the breakthrough a notable engineering achievement for the project.
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With Tunnel No. 8 complete, mining work has now been finished in 13 of the project's 14 tunnels. Tunnel lining works covering 32.4 km have been completed across 12 tunnels, while ballastless track laying has been finished over 21 km inside the tunnels. Civil works, track installation, and railway electrification are continuing across the project.
The 44.96 km rail link is designed to connect Sikkim with the national railway network as part of Indian Railways' capital connectivity initiative. Of the total alignment, 41.55 km lies in West Bengal and 3.41 km in Sikkim. Approximately 86 per cent of the alignment passes through tunnels, with the remaining sections comprising bridges, open cuttings, and station yards.
The project includes 14 tunnels, 13 major bridges, and 10 minor bridges. Five stations are planned — at Sivok, Riyang, Melli, Rangpo, and an underground halt at Teesta Bazar.