Jammu: On the second day two of its visit, the Commission of Railway Safety (CRS) team today conducted the safety inspection from the Reasi to Katra stretch of the Udhampur-Srinagar-Baramulla Railway Line (USBRL).
After the inspection, the CRS team returned to the national capital to submit the primary report to the Department of Railways.
An official said that the team headed by Commissioner of Railway Safety Dinesh Chand Deswal conducted the primary inspection of the track and tunnels from Reasi to Katra after the completion of track work on the railway line. “The CRS is expected to return to Jammu and Kashmir in a few days and conduct another inspection, which will monitor the track, tunnels and every aspect related to the safety in detail. This was the initial inspection which began yesterday when CRS visited up to Banihal and today the team inspected the track and tunnels from Reasi to Katra,” an official said.
This was the important inspection in terms of giving the go-ahead to start direct train service from New Delhi to Kashmir, a project which is of national importance and has remained a dream project for the Government of India (GoI) to connect Kashmir through railways as well.
To make it a reality and start the train by January 26, approval from CRS is important and getting the approval as per schedule will pave the way for the trial run followed by the historic moment of running the train.
Yesterday, the Public Relations Officer (PRO) of Northern Railways, R K Rana said that the CRS will be conducting the visit to the area to take stock of the situation and he will visit the region multiple times to minutely conduct the inspection and submit its report.
He had said that if anything goes according to the plan, the train will hopefully run on January 26, 2025.
Now, after conducting the safety inspection, CRS has returned to New Delhi.
The direct train to Kashmir from the national capital will mark the beginning of a new era and will be a dream come true for the people of Jammu and Kashmir who otherwise have to conduct arduous journeys through National Highway 44 by passing through difficult terrain. The train service will not only provide people easy access to other parts of the country but will also bring goods at lower rates to Kashmir from outside once the goods train also starts.
Already, the train service has reached Katra in the Reasi district, which became a reality in 2014. Before that, Udhampur was connected in 2005, and before that, in 1972, Jammu was connected by rail from Pathankot in Punjab. In Kashmir Valley, local trains are moving from Baramulla to Qazigund, and beyond that, the local train service is up to the Sangaldan area of the Ramban district.
