Global Courant 2023-04-27 10:43:02
In the middle of the mighty Himalayas in Indian-administered Kashmir lies the highest railway bridge in the world.
The bridge over the Chenab River – 1,315 meters long (4,314 feet) and 359 meters high (1,177 feet) from the riverbed – will connect the remote region to India’s vast rail network by providing all-weather connectivity.
At the height of winter, much of the disputed region is cut off from the rest of India.
The bridge, taller than the Eiffel Tower in Paris, is located between the villages of Bakkal and Kauri in the Reasi district of the southern Jammu area of Kashmir.
Built at a cost of $168 million, the bridge is part of the Udhampur-Srinagar-Baramulla Rail Link (USBRL) project, which will connect the region’s main city, Srinagar, to mainland India via rail networks that were built in 1999. started.
Technical marvel
The arch bridge, made of 28,000 tons of steel, is considered an engineering marvel because it was built in an area prone to high seismic activity. The rugged and uneven terrain also brings frequent landslides and harsh weather conditions.
The 119 km long railway project includes 38 tunnels and 931 bridges with a total length of 13 km to enable the rail connection.
Prior to construction, engineers had to create a 26 km (19 mi) access road and a 400-metre-long (1,300 ft) tunnel to reach the bridge site.
The bridge under construction over the Chenab River (File: Prakash Singh/AFP)
While inspecting the completion of the bridge last month, Indian Railways Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw admitted that this was the most difficult engineering challenge for the department.
“This bridge and the other tunnels were difficult because this whole area is very seismically sensitive. To strengthen it against any seismic activity, special reinforcement technology has been used,” the minister said.
Doubts about the much-delayed project were allayed when the minister said the rail link to Srinagar will be completed by December this year or January next year.
The pristine beauty of nature acts as a perfect backdrop for this stunning engineering feat.
Chenab Bridge, Reasi- Jammu & Kashmir #NayeBharatKiNayiRail pic.twitter.com/QymhBHLxxQ
— Darshana Jardosh (@Darshana Jardosh) April 26, 2023
According to official documents, the bridge was built to withstand strong winds and earthquakes of great magnitude.
It took two decades for thousands of workers and hundreds of engineers to complete the feat.
“This project has been the most daunting work undertaken by the post-independence Indian Railways,” an engineer who worked on the project told Al Jazeera.
He did not reveal his name as he was not authorized to speak to the media.
“The completion of the bridge also shows a huge advancement in India’s engineering technology,” he added.
A 2015 photo of the construction of the railway bridge (File: Channi Anand/AP Photo)
Long awaited connectivity
There is no direct rail connection between the Kashmir Valley and mainland India.
The current railway line passing through the valley carries local passengers from Baramulla district in the north to Banihal in Ramban district of the Jammu area.
The new railway bridge will connect Kashmir Valley to Katra in Jammu, reducing the travel time from Katra to Srinagar by five to six hours.
It is therefore a vital part of the Indian Railways project to connect the valley with the rest of India, which has hitherto relied on road networks.
The Srinagar-Jammu highway, the only road link between Kashmir and mainland India, is often blocked due to heavy snowfall during winters, landslides and avalanches. Traffic on the route is at a standstill for days, causing people and commerce to suffer.
The treacherous road prone to accidents has also claimed many lives. Last year, there were at least 648 traffic accidents on the roads, resulting in 93 deaths, according to data from the Federal Ministry of Road Transport and Highways.
Foot by thumb traversed the huge Chenab!
Get a glimpse of the timeline of the structure that now stands as the pinnacle of decades of development: the Chenab Bridge in Jammu and Kashmir. pic.twitter.com/3ItpylIltR
— JAMMU LINKS NEWS (@JAMMULINKS) April 20, 2023
Local residents say that people from different parts of India visit the site to see the bridge.
“This bridge gave employment to many local residents who worked there for years. It has become a tourist attraction,” 36-year-old Gulzar Khan, a resident of Khurru village in Reasi, told Al Jazeera.
Javed Ahmad Tenga, head of the Kashmir Chamber of Commerce and Industries (KCCI), a union of traders in the region, told Al Jazeera that the rail links will boost trade in the region.
“The transport costs of goods are going down. This benefits business. By road it takes a lot of time to get to things here. It will also strengthen the fruit trade,” said Tenga.
Local fears
However, many Kashmiris fear that the rail link would further assimilate the disputed region into mainland India. They fear the project will affect the demographics of India’s only Muslim-majority region.
The fear stems from the 2019 withdrawal of Kashmir’s limited autonomy by Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Hindu nationalist government and bringing it under the direct control of New Delhi.
One of the many changes brought about by the move was that non-Kashmiris could permanently settle in the region and start businesses.
“This rail line will facilitate connectivity, but we are also concerned that there will be an influx of non-local residents to the region. Anyone who wants to come here gets on the train,” said Khursheed Ahmad, a resident of Srinagar.
Last month, the government told parliament that 185 non-locals had bought land in Kashmir, while 1,559 companies had invested in the region.
As of 2020, only one non-resident had purchased land in the region, according to government records.
Being one of the most militarized regions in the world, improved rail connectivity will also transform the security scenario with easy mobilization of supplies, troops and equipment.
“The train will help bring logistics and supplies to Kashmir for the army,” DS Hooda, former northern commander of the Indian army, told Al Jazeera.
Siddiq Wahid, a Kashmiri-based academic and political analyst, said the rail link would mean more control over the region.
“This will undoubtedly help economically. Certainly, trains are ecologically better than roads. Connectivity will greatly help New Delhi in terms of control. I think that’s their ambition,” he told Al Jazeera.
