800 soldiers mark the historical journey of the world’s highest railway in JK; know its name, function and facts

On a historic journey, nearly 800 soldiers from the Indian army travelled from Delhi to Srinagar in an ambitious Udhampur-Srinagar-Baramulla Rail Link (USBRL), including the iconic Single-Arch Chenab Chenab Rail Bridge. The trip was targeted at furloughed soldiers who were trapped in their location due to military conflict with Pakistan due to cancellation of flights to Jamu and Kashmir. Let’s briefly tell you the main characteristics of a bridge.

Details and costs
Chenab Bridge is the world’s tallest railway bridge built on the Chenab river between Bakkal and Kauri in the Roasi district (Chemistre), and aims to connect the Kashmir valley to the country’s vast railway network. The height is 359 meters (1,178 feet), which is 35 meters taller than the world-famous Eiffel Tower in Paris, the capital of France. It is reported that the 1.3-kilometer-long bridge requires more than 1,300 workers and 300 engineers to complete. According to railway officials, the construction cost of the bridge is 1,486 crore.

Construction timetable
Construction work on the Chenab Bridge officially began in 2004 as part of the USBRL project. When the arch is completed in 2021, the entire building ends in August of the following year. The bridge is a weatherproof engineering miracle, estimated to have an estimated lifespan of 120 years and can withstand earthquakes of the order of magnitude of the Richter scale. The first full trial on the bridge was successfully held in June 2024.