Railways conducts trial run on world’s highest arch rail bridge in J&K
According to the Ministry, it was the first ever full train that crossed over the iconic bridge between Dugga and Bakkal stations across the Chenab river, which is the world's highest arch railway bridge
Indian Railways on June 20 successfully conducted a trial run of a eight-coach MEMU train on the world's highest railway bridge — Chenab Bridge — in Jammu and Kashmir, paving the way for the start of rail service on the route from Reasi to Baramulla in Kashmir.
"After an extensive inspection of the newly constructed Chenab Bridge by senior officers from Railway Board, Northern Railway and Konkan Railway, a trial run was conducted on a 46-km-long electrified line section between Sangaldan in Ramban district and Reasi at a speed of 40 kmph," the Railway Ministry said in a statement.
"It was successfully carried out starting at 12:35 pm from Sangaldan and reaching Reasi at 2:05 pm. On the way it passes through nine tunnels with a combined length of 40.787 km and longest tunnel T-44 of 11.13 km," it added.
Indian Railway conducts a trial run on the newly constructed world’s highest railway bridge-Chenab Rail Bridge, built between Sangaldan in Ramban district and Reasi on Thursday. Rail services on the line will start soon.
| Photo Credit:
ANI
According to the Ministry, it was the first ever full train that crossed over the iconic bridge between Dugga and Bakkal stations across the Chenab river, which is the world's highest arch railway bridge.
The stations — Reasi, Bakkal, Dugga and Sawlakote — are situated in Reasi district of J&K.
"The electrification work on this section has been executed with state-of-the-art technology, ROCS (Rigid Overhead Conductor System) at 25 kV, for the first time on railways," the ministry said.
Upon the mainline electric multiple unit (MEMU) train's arrival at Reasi railway station, chants of 'Bharat Mata ki Jai' echoed as a large crowd gathered there to witness the historic event. The train carried employees working on the project as well as railway officials.
Watch | The world’s highest railway bridge is in India
People thanked Prime Minister Narendra Modi for connecting Reasi with Kashmir. "The train service from Reasi to Kashmir could commence by the end of this month," former sarpanch Raj Kumar Sharma, who attended the event, said. He recalled that 20 years ago, when the work started, there were many difficulties as the Railways had to carve paths through mountains and build tunnels.
"Today, the engine arrived with a few coaches, and it is expected that a full train service will commence in the coming days," he said.
Similarly, Tarun Sharma travelled from Reasi railway station to Dhugga and described the journey as historic. The Udhampur-Srinagar-Baramulla Rail Link (USBRL) project, including the 48.1-km-long Banihal-Sangaldan section, was inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on February 20, 2024.
Phase I of the project, covering the 118 km long Qazigund-Baramulla section, was inaugurated in October 2009 under the Congress-led UPA govt.
Subsequent phases saw the inauguration of the 18 km long Banihal-Qazigund section in June 2013 and the 25 km Udhampur-Katra section in July 2014.
In Frames | The valley is not far
Full house: Passengers inside the train towards Sangaldan in Jammu and Kashmir.Snow and shine: A train chugs out of the Pir Panjal tunnel, India’s longest train tunnel, on a snow-covered track at Banihal.Power on: The first electric train in the Kashmir Valley between Sangaldan station and Baramulla station on its maiden voyage.
Difficult terrain: A view of Sangaldan-Khari section of the USBRL project in Ramban district.Travel made easy: Passengers have a relaxed ride along the Banihal-Katra section.Architectural marvel: The newly constructed Chenab Bridge, which is the world’s highest rail arch bridge at 359 metres.Long journey: The bridge on the Bakkal side in Reasi district.Meeting point: The tunnel leading to the newly constructed Chenab Bridge.Finishing up: A construction worker on the cable-stayed Anji Bridge.Bridging mountains: The Anji Bridge, supported by 96 cables, is strong enough for trains running at speeds of up to 100 kmph.1/3″,””],
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