GUWAHATI:
The Northeast Frontier Railway (NFR), on August 17, decided to preserve the British-era Amingaon Railway Station as a heritage site as part of the 75th year of independence.
“Efforts will be made to preserve this station of yesteryears which witnessed the struggles and development of Northeast and deserves a coveted place in the annals of history,” NFR general manager Anshul Gupta said while launching the preservation drive.
Located on the banks of the Brahmaputra River, the station was set up by the British government in Lower Assam’s Kamrup district.
Amingaon was added to the railway map of India in 1908 with the extension of the Kaunia-Dharia line from erstwhile East Bengal (Bangladesh) at the end of the 19th century, Lalmonirhat (Bangladesh), emerged as one of the important railway stations. Links were established with Assam through the Golakganj-Amingaon line.
Before partition, Assam Mail was used to travel from Santaharto Guwahati (Amingaon) vila Lalmonirhat. The train carried passengers all across the country to Amingaon.
There were American engineers who came to build army bases, air fields and lines of communication in the Northeast Frontier of India in the early 20th century.
There were British, American, and German, missionaries, British tea planters and their staff (both Indian and non-Indian) beside labourers who work in tea gardens, British political agents, the army stationed in the frontier, East Bengal on a pilgrimage to Kamakhya or looking for greener pastures beside the few locals who ventured out to the world.
There was a single platform, half a kilometre in size and half of that size in breadth where they all embarked. It was informed that the platform lies abandoned now, and broken benches stand as mute testimony of bygone days. It has been 56 years since the last train rolled out of the Amingaon station.