Railways encounter tunnel squeeze on way to Katra

New Delhi, Jan 28 (UNI) The effort to connect Katra, the base of Vaishno Devi Shrine in Jammu and Kashmir, by rail has received a jolt with one of the main railway tunnels after Udhampur experiencing a squeeze.

The 1200m-long, Tunnel no 1, on the Udhampur-Katra route has had a tunnel squeeze that may put off the opening of the line, internally scheduled for February this year, by about six months, railway officials told UNI.

The railways had encountered this extraordinary problem for the first time, in which tremendous natural pressure pushed up about 250 to 300m stretch of the tunnel surface by around a metre.

This was said to be because the tunnel was dug through the Himalayan range that was still growing. Himalayas are young fold mountains experiencing huge tectonic (internal) force that was expressed in the form of slow and sometimes sudden movement.

The tunnel had been built about three-four years ago and only tracks remained to be placed in it. This would have been done once the bridge over Jhajjar Khad (river) on the Udhampur-Katra line was complete.

However, now the whole raised portion would have to be shaved off and the tunnel surface reinforced. Opinion of international experts would also be taken before undertaking the operations. All this may eat up to six more months.

This meant the 25 km-long section could be thrown open for passenger traffic only by the year end, even though all other things including railway station and yard were ready.

The section, part of the most ambitious railway project to connect Srinagar by rail, had faced delays due to various counts like bureaucratic, financial and technical.

UNI