‘Golden Joint’ of Chenab Railway Bridge

August 16, 2022

The ‘Golden Joint’ of Chenab Railway bridge was inaugurated on August 13, 2022. It was decked with the National flag to celebrate the “Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav”. It is the highest railway bridge in the world. It is located in Reasi district of Jammu and Kashmir.

About the Chenab Rail Bridge:

It is a steel and concrete arch bridge, constructed between Bakkal and Kauri in Reasi district of Jammu and Kashmir. It has been built on Chenab River, at a height of 359 m. It is world’s highest rail bridge. Its base support was completed in November 2017, giving green signal to construction of main arch. Construction of Arch was completed in April 2021. Rail traffic is likely to start in December 2022. Important Features of the Bridge include;

Both ends of the bridge has been connected with the help of High Strength Friction Grip (HSFG) bolts. It is marked as the ‘golden joint’.
The bridge includes 93 deck segments. Each segment has a weight of 85 tonnes.
It is a part of 272-km long railway line from Udhampur to Baramulla that joins Jammu with Kashmir valley. This rail link project is known as ‘Udhampur-Srinagar-Baramulla Rail Link Project’.
It has used around 30,350 tonnes of steel, including 10,620 tonnes to construct the gigantic arch and 14,500 tonnes to construct bridge deck.
It has been constructed near Kauri village upstream of Salal Dam.

This bridge is significant, because Indian Railways has constructed the bridge on a transition curve and a longitudinal gradient for the first time. Usually, bridges are built on a straight or curved platform with uniform radius. Considering the height, sophisticated automatic signalling system has been installed at both the ends. This system will not let the trains cross the bridge, in case wind speed reaches 90kmph.

« Previous Post Next Post »