Railway plans Rs. 458-cr Bridge in J&K

In order to ensure hassle-free transport facilities in the state, the Indian Railways has decided to build a bridge upstream Chenab River at an estimated cost of Rs. 458cr. The Anji Khad Bridge will be a cable-stayed one on Anji Gorge, also known as Anji Khad. This will be the Railways' second attempt to link the two crucial tunnels on either side - Katra and Reasi, as the earlier plan for the mega arch bridge was dropped following concerns that the location was not suitable on account of geological stability. The newly announced bridge will utilize some of the major assets already created. In a cable-stayed bridge, the weight of the deck is supported by cables running directly to one or more towers. The structure will be 196 metres high, with a span of around 290 metres and has been designed by a foreign engineering firm that had presented to the Railways a number of options. According to official estimates, the construction will take around three years to complete. Two tunnels - T-2 on the Katra side, which is around 5.6 km long, and T-3 on the Reasi side, around 2 km long - will be linked by the bridge. The detailed design is being worked out, head of construction of the Northern Railways Project, A K Sachan said.