• Source:JND
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PM Narendra Modi is likely to inaugurate a 17-km stretch of the 272-km-long Udhampur-Srinagar-Baramulla Rail Link (USBRL) Project between Reasi and Katra in January 2025. The Kashmir Valley is all set to receive its first direct train from Delhi, drastically reducing travel time for commuters.
This new service will cover around 800 km between Delhi and Srinagar in under 13 hours.

The USBRL project has been underway for a while now aimed at improving rail connectivity in Jammu and Kashmir. A key section of the project between Katra and Sangaldan, 62-km stretch is nearing completion. As of now, 45 km of this stretch is done, and trial runs are being conducted between Sangaldan and Reasi. Suprisingly, this route is going to feature world’s highest bridge over the Chenab River.

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Earlier this year, Several railway officials inspected the track between Sangaldan and Reasi from June 26 to June 28. The remaining 17-km stretch, linking Reasi to Katra, is in its final phase, with four stations and the T33 tunnel nearly complete. Sources confirm that the section will be ready for trial runs by December 20, 2023.

Ravneet Singh Bittu, Minister of State for Railways has also confirmed that the Prime Minister Modi would likely inaugurate the completed stretch in early 2024, depending on his schedule.

Meanwhile, Kashmir’s railway system is incomplete, with trains running between Sangaldan-Banihal in Jammu and Srinagar-Baramulla in the Valley. Although, the Jammu side, connected to the national railway network, has trains running up to Udhampur and Katra.

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For a bit of history, the USBRL project was approved by the government in 1995, with an initial estimated cost of Rs 2,500 crore. However, the project gained prominence when it was declared a national priority by Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee in 2002. Initially, the first phase of the project, a 118-km section between Baramulla and Qazigund, was completed in 2009, and by 2013, the line was extended to Banihal in the Jammu division.

Similarly, in 2014, the Udhampur-Katra section was opened, and the Banihal-Sangaldan stretch was completed in February 2023. When fully finished, the USBRL project will cost over Rs 35,000 crore, making it one of the most ambitious rail projects in the country.