Vande Bharat soon to run in Kashmir Valley: Rail Minister
Bakkal: Vande Bharat express will soon run on the world’s highest rail bridge over the Chenab river in Jammu and Kashmir. Railway minister Ashwini Vaishnaw informed on Sunday that all the required modern technologies and sufficient materials have been used to construct the rail bridge, where Vande Bharat express can be operated. He also informed that the Udhampur-Banihal track will be completed by December this year, or early next year.
Once the Udhampur-Srinagar-Baramulla Rail Link Project (USBRL) becomes fully operational, Railways is planning to run a Vande Bharat metro train between Jammu and Srinagar.
The deck height of the bridge is 359 metres — taller than Eiffel Tower (330 meters). It is situated in Jammu’s Reasi district, connecting the Kauri and Bakkal ends. 28,660 MT steel has been used in the rail bridge and is situated in an extremely complex, fragile area beside the seismic proneness of the young fold of the Himalayas. The Chenab rail bridge has also been designed to handle heavy storms with strong winds of 266 Kmph maximum.
Prior to the construction of the world’s highest rail bridge, 26 km approach roads and 400 meters long tunnel were built to reach the site. The Executive agency of this project is Konkan Railway Corporation Ltd. In 2013, cable crane was commissioned for erection of steel arch, trestle and piers. In 2017, the incremental launching over a 2.74 degree circular and transition curve of 268 meters length was successfully done for the first time. Then, in 2022, the Golden Joint ceremony was conducted.
The ministry officials added that around 1.5 lakh people of 73 villages have benefited from this project. More than 500 lakh men days of employment have been generated in Katra- Banihal section of the project so far, where 65 per cent employment has been given to locals. Permanent jobs given in railways to 799 eligible land givers, officials confirmed.
This rail bridge is the part of the national Udhampur-Srinagar-Baramulla Rail Link project. Three agencies are involved in the construction of the rail bridge- IRCON, KRCL and northern railway.
Moreover, international agencies and premier Indian institutes- IIT Roorkee, IIT Delhi, DRDO and Geological Survey of India are providing planning and implementation.
The rail ministry also claimed, “A construction marvel in the tough Himalayan terrain, the USBRL project will prove to be a game changer in the overall development of this hilly region, generating immense opportunities for transport, trade and tourism.”
This project has 38 tunnels with a length of 119 km. Rail Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw also visited the Chenab rail bridge and conducted trolly inspection of bridge and tunnels to see the progress of the USBRL project.
He also said that the allocated cost is Rs.6,000 crore in the current fiscal year, whereas, before 2014, this allocation was Rs. 800 crore per year. Praising the hard work of the engineers, the minister also claimed that the rail bridge has codal life of 120 years. Meanwhile, electrification of the in-operation 136 km Banihal- Baramulla section has been completed. At present trial runs and speed tests are being conducted.
