Amid rain-induced disruption in railway services in Dima Hasao district and along the New Haflong-Bandarkhal section in Assam, Tripura Food and Civil Supplies Minister Sushanta Chowdhury on Friday said the state has sufficient stock of food and fuel. Speaking to reporters after holding a review meeting in Agartala, Chowdhury said the state has enough petrol and diesel to last for another five to seven days and urged residents not to panic. The review meeting was attended by the secretary of the Food and Civil Supplies Department, representatives of the Indian Oil Corporation (IOC), merchant associations, and sub-divisional magistrates (SDMs), among others. “Train movements have been disrupted in Assam due to natural calamities. The tracks are not damaged but are waterlogged in some places. We have food and fuel stock for nearly a week,” said the minister. He added that he spoke with the officials of the North East Frontier Railway and they have assured him that rail connectivity will be restored soon. The minister said the state government was also imposing fines on sellers who have been hiking prices illegally since the rail disruption started. Talking about the ‘fuel crisis’ in April which happened after train services were disrupted following landslides in Assam, the minister said, “Unlike last time, the tracks have not been damaged this time. We are hopeful that the services will be restored soon. So, there is no need to panic.” Several trains like the Guwahati-Dullabcherra Express, Guwahati-Silchar Express, Rangiya-Silchar Express, Guwahati-Agartala Special Train, Silchar-Secunderabad Express, and the Lokmanya Express, among others, were cancelled following heavy rain in Assam.
