Ahead of Kashmir train inauguration, final inspection likely before Jan 15

Northern railways’ chief public relations officer Himanshu Shekhar Upadhyaya said the trial runs on the 17-km long Katra-Reasi section, locomotives, freight trains were on

The railway safety commissioner (north) is expected to conduct a final inspection before January 15 ahead of the inauguration of the rail link connecting Kashmir Valley with the rest of the country. Prime Minister Narendra Modi is likely to inaugurate the first Vande Bharat train from Delhi to Srinagar in January.

The work on the Udhampur-Srinagar-Baramulla rail project started in 2005-06. (ANI)

Northern railway chief public relations officer Himanshu Shekhar Upadhyaya said the trial runs on the 17-km long Katra-Reasi section, locomotives, freight trains with concrete and testing load bearing capacity of the cable-stayed bridge over Anji River were on.

“The work on the 17 km Katra-Reasi section has been completed. The most challenging task was the T-33 tunnel, which has also been completed,” said Upadhyaya. He added if the railways safety commissioner felt that further improvements were needed, they would be complied with after the final inspection. “The rail connectivity to Kashmir would not only ramp up the infrastructure but also boost cost-effective delivery of supplies. It would boost tourism because train travel is much cheaper than air travel.”

The work on the Udhampur-Srinagar-Baramulla rail project started in 2005-06. The 118-km-long Qazigund-Baramulla rail section in Kashmir was inaugurated in October 2009. The 18-km Banihal-Qazigund and 25-km Udhampur-Katra sections were commissioned in June 2013 and July 2014. In February this year, the trial run of an electric train was successfully conducted on 40-km of track between Banihal and Sangaldan.

The government plans to run vista-dome trains for a 360-degree view in the Himalayan region.