In a historic milestone, the Udhampur-Srinagar-Baramulla Rail link, which would link Jammu and Kashmir to the rest of the country was completed on Saturday. Railway minister Ashwini Vaishnaw informed about the achievement on X.
Historic milestone; Final track work on the Udhampur-Srinagar-Baramulla Rail link is complete. The ballast-less track work for the 3.2 km-long Tunnel T-33, located at the foothills of Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine and connecting Katra to Reasi, was successfully completed today at 02:00 hrs.
Phase I of the Udhampur-Srinagar-Baramulla Rail link Project (USBRL) project, covering the 118-km-long Qazigund-Baramulla section, was first 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-long Udhampur-Katra section in July 2014.
In February, the first electric train trial run from Banihal to Khari to Sangaldan section on the Banihal-Katra section of the Udhampur-Srinagar-Baramulla Rail Link (USBRL) project in Ramban was successfully conducted on around 40 km of track and tunnels between Banihal and Sangaldan Railway Stations in Ramban district.
"After conduction of a series of such tests, this bridge would be open to run all train services which will be a monumental stride towards the seamless integration of the Kashmir valley with Jammu and the broader Indian landscape," a railway official said. He added, "This would foster social integration by facilitating easier movement of people and goods, thereby promoting cultural exchanges & regional development and boost to economic activities such as tourism and trade."
With aim to provide an alternative and reliable transportation system to Jammu & Kashmir, the Indian Railway has successfully laid a 272-km-long line from Udhampur to Baramulla joining the Kashmir valley with the Railways network under USBRL. This project has been the most challenging works undertaken post-independence by Railways.
(Inputs from Anamika Gaur)
