J&K: Railway officials inspect Chenab rail bridge, world’s highest rail bridge

Reasi (Jammu and Kashmir) [India], June 16 (ANI): Railway officials conducted an extensive inspection of the newly constructed world’s highest railway bridge built on the Chenab River in Jammu and Kashmir.

Northern Railway is set to launch train services on the world’s highest rail bridge which is built between Sangaldan in Ramban district and Reasi.

Konkan Railways Engineer, Deepak Kumar told ANI that the rail service will start soon.

“Today wagon tower has reached Resai station…We are very happy and proud that we have succeeded. The labourers and engineers have been working hard for a long time and today they have finally succeeded. The rail service will start soon on this bridge…,” Kumar said.

At present, the trains operate along the railway line from Kanyakumari to Katra, while services run from Baramulla to Sangaldan in the Kashmir Valley.

The Udhampur-Srinagar-Baramulla Rail Link (USBRL) project will be completed by year-end.

The 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. Subsequent phases saw the inauguration of the 18 km long Banihal-Qazigund section in June 2013 and the 25 km long Udhampur-Katra section in July 2014.

The Chenab Rail Bridge, constructed 359 metres (around 109 feet) above the Chenab River in the Jammu and Kashmir region, is some 35 metres taller than the Eiffel Tower.

The 1,315 metre-long bridge is part of a broader project which aims to make the Kashmir valley accessible by the Indian Railway network.