Direct rail link to Vaishno Devi by year end

Srinagar: Work on Udhampur-Katra link of the rail project to Kashmir is likely to be completed by December, officials said today.

All bridges, tracks, stations and tunnels have been completed on Udhampur-Katra Railway link and the project is expected to be completed by this year end, they said.

Katra town in Reasi is the base camp for pilgrims to Vaishno Devi shrine where an estimated eight million devotees pay obeisance every year. With completion of work on this link, devotees will be able to travel directly to Katra.

They said the longest transportation tunnel in the country, which will connect Qazigund town with Banihal on the either side of the Pir Panjal mountain range, is also expected to be completed by the year end.

The 11-km tunnel is being constructed near the existing 2.6-km Jawahar tunnel, the gateway to Kashmir Valley. However, the work on the section between Qazigund and Banihal is expected to be completed by March 2012, they said.

The challenging section of the railway project between Katra-Qazigund comprises 80 per cent length in tunnels and seven bridges.
The section passes through two important rivers Anji and Chenab where mega bridges are under construction.