All you need to know about world's highest Chenab railway bridge inaugurated today
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday inaugurated the world's highest railway bridge, constructed over the Chenab River in Jammu and Kashmir. He also flagged off two specially designed Vande Bharat trains between Srinagar and Katra, marking the completion of a 42-year-old project aimed at connecting the Kashmir Valley with the rest of the country by rail.
This landmark achievement is expected to open up new avenues for growth, trade, and connectivity in the region, while also boosting employment and livelihood opportunities for local communities.
Here's all you need to know about the newly inaugurated bridge:
1. The Chenab rail bridge runs over the Chenab River in Reasi district of Jammu and Kashmir. Located between Katra and Sangaldan on the Jammu-Baramulla line, the bridge was built at a cost of around Rs 1,400 crore.
2. It is the highest arch bridge in the world, with a deck height of 359 meters from the riverbed — making it 35 meters taller than Paris's iconic Eiffel Tower.
3. Connecting the Kashmir Valley with the rest of the country, the bridge forms a critical part of the Udhampur-Srinagar-Baramulla Rail Link (USBRL) project, which is being developed at a cost of Rs 35,000 crore.
4. The Chenab railway bridge is a steel-and-concrete marvel spanning 1,315 meters across the river gorge. It consists of a 530-meter-long approach bridge and a 785-meter-long deck arch bridge (the part of the bridge on which vehicles run)
5. The project was overseen by the Konkan Railway Corporation, a division of Indian Railways. The design and construction were carried out by a joint venture involving Afcons Infrastructure, South Korea-based Ultra Construction & Engineering Company, and VSL India.
6. The design for the bridge's foundation protection was prepared by the Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore. IIT Delhi conducted the slope stability analysis, while both IIT Delhi and IIT Roorkee handled the seismic analysis. The Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) helped in making the bridge blast-proof.
7. Steel for the bridge was supplied by the Steel Authority of India, while Swiss company Mageba provided specialised spherical stopper bearings. The project involved the fabrication of 28,660 metric tonnes of steel and also included the construction of 26 kilometers of motorable roads.
8. Sophisticated Tekla software was used for the project, allowing detailed 3D modeling of the bridge and its structural components.
9. The bridge is designed for a lifespan of 120 years and can support train speeds of up to 100 km per hour. It is capable of withstanding earthquakes up to magnitude 8 on the Richter scale, as well as high-intensity explosions equivalent to 40 tonnes of TNT.
10. The steel structure is built to endure extreme weather conditions, including temperatures as low as -20 degrees Celsius and wind speeds of up to 266 km per hour.
11. Although the project was approved in 2008, construction was delayed for a time due to concerns over stability and safety in the challenging Himalayan terrain.
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