The Indian Railways successfully conducted a trial run on the world's highest railway bridge in Jammu and Kashmir on Thursday. The newly constructed Chenab railway bridge, located between Sangaldan in Ramban district and Reasi, is soon to be operational for rail services, officials announced.
A video of the trial run shows a train traversing the towering bridge over the Chenab River, set against the scenic backdrop of Jammu and Kashmir's mountains.
Union Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw shared the achievement on his social media handle X, stating, "Successful trial run of MEMU train between Sangaldan - Reasi section of USBRL project. Jammu & Kashmir."
ALSO READ: J&K: Railways Conduct Inspection At World's Highest Chenab Rail Bridge — WATCH
As per the NDTV report, the bridge, an engineering marvel, stands 359 meters (around 1,178 feet) above the Chenab River, making it approximately 35 meters taller than the Eiffel Tower in Paris. It was constructed as part of the Udhampur Srinagar Baramulla Rail Link (USBRL) Project, which is expected to be completed by the end of the year.
PM Narendra Modi Inaugurates USBRL project
The expansive USBRL project includes the 48.1 km Banihal-Sangaldan section, which was inaugurated by PM Narendra Modi on February 20, 2024.
The first phase of the project, covering the 118 km Qazigund-Baramulla stretch, was inaugurated in October 2009. Successive phases saw the opening of the 18 km Banihal-Qazigund section in June 2013 and the 25 km Udhampur-Katra section in July 2014.
The 1,315-metre-long Chenab bridge is a significant part of the larger project lined up to integrate the Kashmir Valley into the Indian Railway network.