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INFRASTRUCTURE

henab Railway bridge is monumental task,” said Giridhar
designed to withstand Rajagopalan, Deputy Managing
high wind speeds up Director, Afcons.
to 266 km/hr and
This bridge is one of its kind
bear earthquakes of with an arch span of 467m and a
C the highest zone-V deck length of 780.3m, weighing
intensity. Vital for improving
connectivity, promoting regional more than 8,498 tonnes. An
development, and enhancing incremental launching technique
India’s strategic infrastructure was used from both sides of
in J&K, the Chenab River Bridge the bridge, from the Kauri and
is constructed in the seismically Bakkal ends. “We employed
active and geologically complex controlled blasting techniques
Himalayan region and engineers to carve space on these slopes
have had to overcome unique and then undertook extensive
challenges such as unstable rock foundation work involving
slopes, landslides, and harsh over 34,000 cubic meters of
weather conditions. concrete and 5,800 tonnes of
reinforcement”, he added.
Constructed over the Chenab
river in the Kouri region of the The real challenge was
Reasi district, the bridge features creating a stable foundation for
98 deck segments and is a the world’s highest single-arch
part of the much-anticipated railway arch in an area that
272-km-long railway line from is both geologically unstable
Udhampur to Baramulla. It is and seismically active. In such
1315m long and will remain a scenario, every step—from
operational at a restricted slope stability analysis using DIP
pace of 30 km/hour even after & SWEDE software, to massive
removing one pier/trestle. The consolidation grouting and
bridge’s construction involved installation of rock and cable
the fabrication of 31,121 MT anchors—had to be executed
structural steel, 10 lakh cubic with extreme precision. “Simply
metres of earthwork, 66,000 put, nature gave us a fierce
cubic metres of concrete, and 26 battleground, and we had to
kms of motorable roads. It took respond with equally fierce
more than 1,300 workers and engineering ingenuity”, he
300 engineers over a decade to continued.
bring the project to fruition. The arch closure of the bridge
The bridge, on the upstream was the most challenging and
of Salal Dam, is situated near required extreme precision.
Kauri village in the Reasi district Afcons created a virtual twin
of Jammu & Kashmir. It is part of of the bridge using cutting-
the Udhampur-Srinagar-Baramulla edge software to ensure
Rail Link Project (USBRL) that precision in stress distribution,
will connect Jammu & Kashmir component intricacies and
with the rest of the country. “We camber requirements. They
have built the bridge over one deployed the world’s tallest
of the deepest gorges in India crossbar cable crane across the
with treacherous mountain slopes gorge—a technological marvel
and unpredictable rock strata. in itself—which allowed them to
Stabilising these steep slopes in handle and place very heavy steel
an earthquake prone area was a segments with extreme precision.

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