Indian Railways has completed the construction of the arch of Chenab Bridge, the world’s highest railway bridge located in the union territory of Jammu and Kashmir.
The construction of the 1,315m long bridge over the Chenab river is part of the Udhampur-Srinagar-Baramulla rail link project (USBRL).
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According to a Ministry of Railways statement, the construction of the steel arch was the most difficult part of the bridge over Chenab.
The construction was completed when a 5.6m of metal was fitted at the highest point joining the two arms of the arch stretching from either banks of the river.
This comes weeks after the Indian Railways completed the arch bottom of the Chenab Bridge.
With arch work now complete, the executing agency will take up the remaining works which include removal of the stay cables, filling of the concrete in the arch rib, erection of the steel trestle, launching of the viaduct and track laying.
Once complete, the bridge will stand at 359m above the river bed level making it the highest railway bridge in the world.
The overall construction of the bridge will cost around $202.69m (Rs14.86bn).
The construction works will involve fabrication of 28,660 MT steel, 1 million cum earthwork, 66,000 cum concrete and 26km motorable roads.
It is designed to withstand wind speed up to 266km/hr and to bear earthquake forces of highest intensity Zone-V in India.
The design life of the bridge stands at 120 years.
