Chenab: Trial run done for world’s highest rail bridge

01 Jul 2024

Indian Railways conducted a successful trial run on the newly-constructed Chenab Rail Bridge, the world’s highest single-arch railway bridge. This bridge connects Sangaldan in Ramban district to Reasi. Earlier, the Indian Railways had successfully conducted an engine trial run on this marvel of engineering.

The inaugural trial run between Sangaldan and Reasi is shown in a video that the Ministry of Railways posted on the social media site X. Union Minister Dr Jitendra Singh said, "Train service from Ramban to Reasi via the world’s highest railway bridge built on river Chenab will begin soon.

The Udhampur-Srinagar-Baramulla Rail Link (USBRL) project will be completed by the year-end.” The bridge has been built at an estimated expense of Rs.140 billion. Aiming to increase connectivity in Jammu and Kashmir, the `350 billion USBRL project includes the bridge.

The incredible challenge is the numerous tunnels (63 km in length) and bridges (7.5 km) that must be built in extremely challenging Himalayan terrain. The Chenab Bridge's crossing of the deep gorge of the Chenab River, close to the Salal Hydro Power Dam, is seen to be the most challenging section.

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