India launches restoration of Northern Railway Line under US$5 million grant
COLOMBO – India has commenced restoration work on Sri Lanka’s Northern Railway Line under a US$5 million grant, reinforcing bilateral cooperation in post-disaster recovery and critical infrastructure rehabilitation.
The restoration was jointly launched by the High Commissioner of India to Sri Lanka, Santosh Jha, and the Minister of Transport, Highways and Urban Development, Bimal Rathnayake. The event was attended by Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Livestock, Namal Karunaratne, Governor of the North Western Province, Tissa Kumarasiri Warnasuriya, and Member of Parliament Geetha Herath, among other officials.
The project is part of India’s US$450 million reconstruction and rehabilitation package announced during the recent visit of India’s Minister of External Affairs, Dr S. Jaishankar, to Sri Lanka. It follows extensive damage caused by Cyclone Ditwah, which severely disrupted rail connectivity across the northern and north-central regions.
Given the critical role of railways in passenger movement, essential services, and logistics, the Government of India extended grant assistance for the urgent restoration of the Northern Railway Line, which was originally constructed with Indian support. The works are being implemented by IRCON International Limited, an Indian public sector undertaking with extensive experience in railway construction and rehabilitation.
Restoration will focus on three severely affected sections, Maho-Omanthai, Omanthai-Jaffna, and Medawachchiya-Mannar, where cyclone-related damage led to major service disruptions. According to officials, the rapid commencement of work, less than three weeks after the announcement of assistance, underscores India’s emphasis on time-bound delivery of development cooperation.
Authorities aim to restore regular train services to pre-Ditwah frequencies within three months, by April 2026, ahead of the Sinhala and Tamil New Year. Remaining works are scheduled for completion by May 2026. The accelerated timeline will involve large-scale deployment of manpower and specialised machinery. IRCON will also complete pending ancillary works on the Maho–Omanthai section under India’s existing Line of Credit.
Railways remain a key pillar of India–Sri Lanka development cooperation, with India’s cumulative financial assistance to Sri Lanka’s railway sector amounting to approximately US$1.2 billion. This includes the construction and rehabilitation of nearly 500 kilometres of railway track, installation of signalling systems across about 400 kilometres, and the supply of rolling stock, significantly enhancing the operational capacity of Sri Lanka Railways and strengthening nationwide rail connectivity.
–ENCL
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