Indian Railways on Thursday conducted a trial run of the eight-coach mainline electric multiple unit (MEMU) train successfully on the world's highest arch rail bridge, the Chenab bridge, in Jammu and Kashmir, paving the way for the start of rail service from Reasi to Baramulla in Kashmir.
News agency ANI shared a glimpse of the trial on social media platform X where the train passes through the mountainous terrain of Jammu and Kashmir.
#WATCH | J&K: 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. Rail services on the line will start soon pic.twitter.com/gHGxhMHYe3
June 20, 2024The Railway Ministry in a statement said, "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 ministry said the journey started at 12:35 pm from Sangaldan and reached Reasi at 2:05 pm. The train passed through all nine tunnels which have a combined length of 40.787 km, with the longest tunnel, T-44, being 11.13 km.
Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw shared a glimpse of this journey on X:
Successful trial run of MEMU train between Sangaldan - Reasi section of USBRL project.
June 20, 2024
📍Jammu & Kashmir pic.twitter.com/GjaKX6Ci8QThis is the first-ever full train to cross the iconic bridge between Dugga and Bakkal stations across the Chenab River, which is the world's highest arch railway bridge, said the Railway Ministry.
"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.
When the train arrived at Reasi railway station, chants of 'Bharat Mata ki Jai' echoed from people who had gathered to witness the historic moment. Employees and officials working on the project travelled aboard the train during the trial run.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the Udhampur-Srinagar-Baramulla Rail Link (USBRL) project, including the 48.1-km-long Banihal-Sangaldan section, on February 20.
The Congress-led UPA government inaugurated Phase I of the project, spread across the 118-km-long Qazigund-Baramulla section, in October 2009. Thereafter, subsequent phases were inaugurated based on their developments.
The ministry stated, "After a series of such tests, the 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."
This is an initiative to provide a reliable and alternative transportation system to the people of Jammu and Kashmir. The Indian Railways have successfully built a 272-km railway line between Udhampur and Baramulla to connect the Kashmir valley through a rail network under the USBRL project.
(With PTI inputs)
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