Prime Minister Narendra Modi is set to inaugurate the Vande Bharat train service to the Kashmir Valley on February 17, fulfilling a decades-old dream of establishing a rail link to the landlocked region.
The train will operate on the Udhampur-Srinagar-Baramulla Rail Link (USBRL), a technological feat that includes India’s first cable-stayed Anji Khad Bridge, with a 331-meter-high pylon, and the Chenab Railway Bridge, the world’s tallest railway bridge. Standing 359 meters above the riverbed, the Chenab Bridge also holds the record as the highest arch bridge globally.
The USBRL consists of over two dozen small and large tunnels, reducing travel time for the Vande Bharat train, which has been designed with climate-friendly technology. Its air-brake system is optimized for maximum efficiency in sub-zero temperatures.
The train will have fully air-conditioned coaches, automatic plug doors, mobile charging sockets, a facility to order food, and many other features, including a special defrosting mechanism for the driver’s windshield.
During the inauguration of the Sonamarg tunnel, PM Modi had assured the people of Jammu and Kashmir that a rail link between the Valley and the rest of the country would soon become a reality.
With this all-weather rail link, the uncertainties caused by climate conditions affecting the Jammu-Srinagar National Highway will become a thing of the past. This all-weather rail corridor will eliminate disruptions caused by harsh weather conditions on the Jammu-Srinagar National Highway.
The train to the Kashmir Valley is expected to boost tourism, horticulture, industries, and education while benefiting citizens. The travel time from Delhi to Srinagar will be 13 hours.
The mandatory deboarding at Katra railway station will no longer be required from August this year, as the renovation and upgradation of Jammu railway station will be completed to facilitate the Vande Bharat train service.
-IANS
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