Char Dham Railway

Last updated

Char Dham Railway
Overview
StatusUnder-construction
Locale Uttarakhand
Termini
Website http://www.indianrailways.gov.in
Service
SystemBroad Gauge
ServicesTwo separate Y-fork railways with a total of four individual routes
Operator(s) Indian Railways
Technical
Line length327 km (203 mi)
Track length327 km (203 mi)
Track gauge 1,676 mm (5 ft 6.0 in)
Electrification 25kV OHE
Operating speed110 kmph
Highest elevation1,733 m (5,686 ft)

The Char Dham Railway, the Indian Railways's under construction twin railway lines under Char Dham Pariyojana project by connecting the holiest places of Hinduism called Chota Char Dham, from the existing Doiwala railway station near Dehradun to Gangotri and Yamunotri via a fork at Uttarkashi and another set of twin rail links from the upcoming railway station at Karnaprayag to Kedarnath and Badrinath via a fork at Saikot. The line is also of strategic military importance and has been designated a national project. [1] [2]

Contents

Railway routes

Existing railheads

At present, the relevant railway lines are as follows:

New lines in the project

The Char Dham Railway has two different Y-shaped railways, with total of the following four individual rail lines:

Strategic importance

Once this railway line is completed, India-China border will be closer to the rest of India by railways. The time taken to reach the strategic border military stations from Delhi will be reduced by providing safe and quick mode of public transport for personnel and equipment. [1]

Challenges

After the Konkan Railway, Hassan–Mangalore line and Jammu–Baramulla line, this line will be the most challenging railway project in Indian Railways due to mountainous terrain, a large number of tunnels and high bridges and severe cold weather in flood, landslide and earthquake prone high altitude mountainous area. [1] [2]

While Char Dham Rail will connect the area in Gharwal region, the DPR for the following new rail lines were announced in the 2024-25 to connect the other regions of Uttrakhand: [8]

Current status

See also

Related Research Articles

The Chota Char Dham is an important modern Hindu pilgrimage circuit in Uttarakhand, in the Indian Himalayas. Located in the Garhwal region of the state of Uttarakhand, the circuit consists of four sites—Gangotri, Yamunotri, Kedarnath, and Badrinath. Badrinath is also one of the four destinations of the longer Char Dham from which the Chota Char Dham likely draws its name.

The Mountain railways of India are the railway lines that were built in the mountainous regions of India. The term mainly includes the narrow-gauge railways in these regions but may also include some broad-gauge railways.

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Karnaprayag is a town and municipal board in the Chamoli District in the Indian state of Uttarakhand. Karnaprayag is one of the Panch Prayag of Alaknanda River, situated at the confluence of the Alaknanda and Pindar River.

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This article is about the old number of Delhi-Meerut-Roorkee-Haridwar-Badrinath National Highway.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Char Dham</span> Four Hindu pilgrimage sites in India

The Char Dham, or the Chatur Dhama, is a set of four Hindu pilgrimage sites in India, consisting of Badrinath, Dwarka, Puri and Rameswaram. Badrinath, Dwarka, and Puri are shrines of Vishnu, whereas Rameswaram is a shrine of Shiva.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sapta Badri</span> Group of seven Hindu temples of Vishnu in Uttarakhand, India

Sapta Badri constitutes a group of seven sacred Hindu temples, dedicated to god Vishnu, located in Garhwal Himalayas in the Indian state of Uttarakhand. The Badrinath temple, called the Badri Vishal is the primary temple among the seven shrines. The other six being Adi Badri, Bhavishya Badri, Yogadhayan Badri, Vriddha Badri, Ardha Badri and Dhyan Badri. The Panch Badri temple circuit consisted of only five temples, omitting Ardha Badri and usually Dhyan Badri. Rarely, Narasingh Badri, is included in the Sapta Badri or Panch Badri list.

Sarola Brahmin, also called Saryul and Serul are the oldest Garhwali Brahmins from Uttarakhand, India. These families were founded in the 6th and 7th centuries by scions of multiple Brahmin magnate clans to rule as the sacerdotal aristocracy of the Himalayan Kingdoms.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Yamunotri Temple</span> Hindu Temple in Uttarakhand, India

Yamunotri Temple is a Hindu temple, situated in the western region of Garhwal Himalayas at an altitude of 3,291 metres (10,797 ft) in Uttarkashi district, Uttarakhand, India. It's just 129 km from Uttarkashi, the main district headquarters. The temple is dedicated to Goddess Yamuna, and has a black marble idol of the goddess. The Yamunotri temple is a full day's journey from Uttarakhand's main towns — Uttarkashi, Rishikesh, Haridwar or Dehradun.

Uttarakhand is a state in the northern part of India. It is often referred to as the "Devbhoomi" due to its religious significance and numerous Hindu temples and pilgrimage sites found throughout the state. As a result, religious tourism forms a major portion of the tourism in the state. Uttarakhand is known for the natural environment of the Himalayas. 2019 Tourist Arrivals Domestic – 40,000,000 per/year and Foreigner – 150,000 per year. Tourism business in Uttarakhand generated ₹ 23,000 crores during 2013–14.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Char Dham Highway</span> Proposed two-lane highway in Uttarakhand, India

Char Dham National Highway, is an under construction two-lane 889 km long National Highway with a minimum width of 10 metres in the Indian state of Uttarakhand under Char Dham Pariyojana. The under construction highway will complement the under-construction Char Dham Railway by connecting the four holy places in Uttarakhand states namely Badrinath, Kedarnath, Gangotri and Yamunotri. The project includes 889 km national highways which will connect the whole of Uttarakhand state. It will connect Delhi–Dehradun Expressway on its southern end to India-China Border Roads on its northern ends.

Maneri is a town in Uttarakhand, India. Situated on the banks of river Bhagirathi 8 km north of Uttarkashi, it is the home of Maneri Dam and the terminating railway station on Chota Char Dham Railway nearest to Gangotri.

Saikot is a village in the Chamoli district of Uttarakhand state in India. Situated on the banks of Alaknanda River, it is a proposed y-forked railway junction on Chota Char Dham Railway for two different railways going to Kedarnath and Badrinath.

Sonprayag is a village in the Rudraprayag district of Uttarakhand state in India. Approximately 73 Kilometres from Rudraprayag Town, the district headquarter. Situated on the banks of river Mandakini River, it is a proposed Y-forked railway junction on Chota Char Dham Railway for two different railways going to Kedarnath and Badrinath.

The Doiwala–Dehradun–Uttarkashi–Maneri Gangotri Railway, notified as the project of national strategic importance, is Indian Railways's one of the four constituent routes of the proposed Char Dham Railway connecting the holiest Chota Char Dham of Hinduism. This 131 km route starts from the existing Doiwala station near Dehradun and will terminate at Maneri close to Gangotri.

The Uttarkashi–Palar Yamunotri Railway, notified as the project of national strategic importance, is Indian Railways's one of the four constituent routes of the proposed Char Dham Railway connecting the holiest Chota Char Dham of Hinduism. This 22 km route starts from Uttarkashi and ends at Palar near Yamunotri.

The Karnaprayag–Saikot–Sonprayag Kedarnath Railway, notified as the project of national strategic importance, is Indian Railways's one of the four constituent routes of the proposed Char Dham Railway connecting the holiest Chota Char Dham of Hinduism. This 99 km route starts from Karnaprayag and ends at Sonprayag 13 km before Kedarnath.

The Saikot–Joshimath Badrinath Railway, notified as the project of national strategic importance, is Indian Railways's one of the four constituent routes of the proposed Char Dham Railway connecting the holiest Chota Char Dham of Hinduism. This 75 km route starts at Saikot and ends at Joshimath 46 km before Badrinath.

The Rishikesh–Karnaprayag line is a 126 km long under-construction railway line, which will run from Yog Nagari Rishikesh railway station in Rishikesh to Karnaprayag in the Garhwal region of Uttarakhand state of India. It is the main feeder route to Indian Railways' Char Dham Railway project which aims to connect the Char Dham pilgrimage shrines of Yamunotri, Gangotri, Badrinath and Kedarnath. As part of an Indian geostrategic initiative to build infrastructure along the India-China border to discourage Chinese expansion, this rail line is of national strategic importance, hence it is being tracked on the Central Government’s PRAGATI portal.

The Uttarakhand Metro is a light rapid transit system proposed for the city of Dehradun, India. The Unified Metropolitan Transport Authority (UMTA) approved 73 km long Deharadun–Haridwar–Rishikesh Metro Rail corridor in Uttarakhand in June 2020.The project will be executed by the Uttarakhand Metro Rail Corporation Limited (UkMRC), a special purpose vehicle and venture of the Government of Uttarakhand. The first phase, or Line-1, will be 32 km long with 10 stations, starting near the Jatwara Bridge in Jwalapur, running parallel to the NH-34 Haridwar-Rishikesh highway, and ending at Rishikesh’s Chandrabhaga Bridge. The second phase, or Line-2, will be 41 km long, following National Highway-7 from Nepali Farm to Dehradun’s Inter-State Bus Terminal (ISBT) via the Vidhan Sabha. The estimated cost of the project would be ₹ 40,150 crore.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Yog Nagari Rishikesh railway station</span> Railway station in Uttarakhand, India

Yog Nagari Rishikesh railway station is a railway station serving the city of Rishikesh in the Indian state of Uttarakhand. It lies in the Northern railway network zone of Indian Railways.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Chardham to get rail connectivity; Indian Railways pilgrimage linking project to cost Rs 43.29k crore, India.com, 12-May-2017
  2. 1 2 3 Railway minister lays foundation stone for final location survey on char dham route, India Times news, 13-May-2017
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Good news for Chardham rail line, approved budget for this big work, Live Hindustan, 18 January 2018.
  4. ↑ 采编 (26 November 2005). "中印边境自卫反击作战史". 中国国防资讯网. Archived from the original on 26 June 2009. Retrieved 26 November 2005.
  5. 1 2 Achilles Heel in India's Border Defence with China!, Indian Defence Review, 20 June 2017.
  6. ↑ After 24 years of work, strategic military outpost near India-China border connected with motorable road, Times of India, 11 Nov 2016.
  7. ↑ Coming soon: India’s longest railway tunnel on Rishikesh–Karnaprayag route, Hindustan Times news, 19-Sept-2016
  8. 1 2 3 4 uttarakhand-gets-allocation-of-rs-5131-crore-for-various-rail-projects-in-budget-ashwini-vaishnav-2629909, news9live.com, 24 July 2024.
  9. ↑ https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/dehradun/rail-ministry-sanctions-survey-of-tanakpur-gairsain-karnaprayag-rail-track/articleshow/68223524.cms Tanakpur-Bageshwar-Karanprayag rail line survey approved, Times of India, 4 Mar 2019.
  10. ↑ India to lay 14 strategic railway lines near China, Pakistan border, Pakistan Today, APRIL 4, 2014.
  11. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 Char Dham Rail Project: Route, Current Update, and More, field360, 24 Feb 2024.
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