Jammu : A tight security blanket has been put in place in Jammu and Kashmir, particularly all along the vital installation of the railways ahead of the inauguration of much awaited Katra-Srinagar rail link by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi on June 6.
The rail link, which was to be inaugurated on April 19 earlier by PM Modi, was postponed due to bad weather. Union Minister in the Prime Minister’s Office, Dr Jitendra Singh posted on X, “History in the making… Just 3 days to go! The mighty #ChenabBridge, the world’s highest railway bridge, stands tall in #JammuandKashmir.” “Part of the Udhampur-Srinagar-Baramulla Railway Link (USBRL). Built to withstand nature’s toughest tests. PM @narendramodi to inaugurate the #ChenabBridge on 6th June, 2025,” Dr Singh posted on X. “A proud symbol of New India’s strength and vision!,” he said. “The security has been heightened across the Jammu region and along all the vital installations of the Jammu Division of the Northern Railways ahead of the Katra-Srinagar rail link inauguration by the Prime Minister scheduled on June 6,” an official said. He added that the inauguration of the Udhampur-Srinagar-Baramulla-Rail Project (USBRL) by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi is much awaited and a dream coming true for millions of people.
Official sources said that the Prime Minister Narendra Modi is scheduled to inaugurate the world’s tallest Chenab Rail Bridge and Anji Khad Rail Bridge on June 6, and will also flag off the special Kashmir edition of Vande Bharat Express from Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Katra Railway Station to Srinagar. He will also address a public programme at the Sports Ground, Katra, they said. This will be the first visit of the Prime Minister to Jammu and Kashmir during ongoing Operation Sindoor and post April 22 Pahalgam terror attack in which 26 civilians, including 25 tourists and a local, were killed.
Out of the total 272-km, Udhampur-Srinagar-Baramulla Rail Link (USBRL) project, 209 km was commissioned in phases with the first phase (118km Qazigund-Baramulla section) commissioned in October 2009, followed by (18-km) Banihal-Qazigund in June 2013, (25-km) Udhampur-Katra in July 2014 and (48.1 km ) Banihal-Sangaldan stretch in February, last year. The work on the 46- km Sangaldan-Reasi section was also completed in June last year, leaving a total of 17 km stretch between Reasi and Katra which was also completed in February-March this year that led to the start of trial run of trains including Vande Bharat. The Katra to Srinagar Vande Bharat Express will have features like heating systems, anti-spall layers, and automatic doors. The train is designed to operate smoothly in cold weather, down to minus 20 degrees Celsius. The Katra-Srinagar Vande Bharat will run on the world’s highest railway arch bridge and Anji Bridge constructed on river Chenab in Reasi district.
