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:

Proposed new lines

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]

Current status

Char Dham Railway project's 327 km long construction, costing ₹43,292 crore (USD $6.6 billion), began with the foundation stone laying and commencement of ₹120 crore Final Location Survey (FSL) in May 2017 by the Union Minister of Railways Suresh Prabhu. [1] [2] In January 2018, reconnaissance survey was complete, and final survey using airborne electromagnetic technique was underway by Turkish-Ukrainian company, which will be completed in 2 years, after which track laying would begin in December 2019. As of July, 2020 New Rishikesh railway station is ready and operational. Bridge over Chandrabhaga river is being laid. Also a bridge over Alaknanda river in Tehri is under construction. Both these bridges will be ready by 2021 as per plan. Land for all railway stations is acquired and work is going on in small phases over the entire route. [3]

See also

Related Research Articles

The Chota Char Dham is an important 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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mountain railways of India</span> 19th-century narrow-gauge railway lines in India

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 and metre-gauge railways in these regions but may also include some broad-gauge railways.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Karnaprayag</span> Town in Uttarakhand, India

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.

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

In Hinduism, the yatra (pilgrimage) to the tirthas has special significance for earning the punya needed to attain the moksha (salvation) by performing the darśana, the parikrama (circumambulation), the yajna, the Dhyana, the puja (worship), the prarthana, the dakshina, the seva, the bhandara, etc. These sacred places are usually located on the banks of sacred waters, such as sacred rivers or their tributaries, the kundas, the ghats, or the stepwells, or the temple tanks.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">National Highway 58 (India, old numbering)</span> Old numbering of road in India

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 major Hindu pilgrimage sites in India

The Char Dham, also rendered the Chatur Dhama is a set of four pilgrimage sites in India. It is believed that visiting these sites helps achieve moksha (salvation). The four Dhams are Badrinath, Dwarka, Jagannath and Rameswaram. It is believed that every Hindu should visit the Char Dhams during one's lifetime. The Char Dham as defined by Adi Shankara consists of four Hindu pilgrimage sites. These main 'dhamas' are the shrines of Vishnu and Rameshwaram is a shrine of Shiva. All the 'dhamas' are related to four epochs,(1) Dham of Satyuga- Badrinath, Uttarakhand (2) Dham of Tretayuga -Rameswaram, Tamil Nadu (3) Dham of Dwaparayuga - Dvaraka, Gujarat (4) Dham of Kaliyuga - Jagannatha Puri, Odisha.

<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.

Ghansali is located in Ghansali Tehsil of Tehri Garhwal district in Uttarakhand, India. Ghansali town offers a splendid beauty of Bhilangana River on one side and dense forest at other. According to the 2011 census it has a population of 392 living in 82 households. Its main agriculture product is paddy growing.

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

Yamunotri Temple is situated in the western region of Garhwal Himalayas at an altitude of 3,291 metres (10,797 ft) in Uttarkashi district, Uttarakhand. 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. The actual temple is only accessible by a 13 kilometres (8.1 mi) trek from the town of Hanuman Chatti and a 6 kilometres (3.7 mi) walk from Janki Chatti; horses or palanquins are available for rent. The hike from Hanuman Chatti to Yamunotri takes in views of a number of waterfalls. There are two trekking routes from Hanuman Chatti to Yamunotri; the one along the right bank proceeds via the Markandeya Tirth, where the sage Markandeya wrote the Markandeya Purana. The other route–which lies on the left bank of the river–goes via Kharsali, from where Yamunotri is a five or six hours climb.

Uttarakhand is a state in the northern part of India. It is often referred to as the "Devbhumi" 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 825 km long express 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 900 km national highways which will connect 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. Approx. 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.

Palar, is a village in Uttarkashi district of Uttarakhand state in India. Situated on the banks of Yamuna river and the terminating railway station on the Uttarkashi-Palar Yamunotri Railway route of Chota Char Dham Railway nearest to Yamunotri.

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 an under-construction railway line, which will run from Yog Nagari Rishikesh railway station in Rishikesh to Karnaprayag. It is Indian Railways' proposed route for the Char Dham Railway to connect the Char Dham pilgrimage of Uttarakhand. The line is also part of an Indian geostrategic initiative to build infrastructure along the India-China border to discourage Chinese expansion. The project is considered to be of national strategic importance and is being tracked on the Central Government’s PRAGATI portal. When ready, it will help improve connectivity to the Char Dham shrines of Yamunotri, Gangotri, Badrinath and Kedarnath in the Garhwal region of the Himalayas in Uttarakhand.

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
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.