Restoration work on Katra-Jammu-Kathua track in full swing, 4 train services to resume soon

Jammu, Sep 10 (PTI) More than 250 workers are working in full swing to restore the Katra-Jammu-Kathua rail track, where key installations have been damaged by floods, with officials expecting that four train services would be resumed soon.

Top railway officials, led by Railway Safety Commissioner (CRS) of Northern Railway, Dinesh Chandra Deswal, inspected the affected bridges and reviewed the restoration work on Wednesday.

"More than 250 workers are engaged in repairing key bridges damaged by the floods, including Bridge number 232 over the Chakki River between Pathankot Cantt and Kandrodi Block Section, which suffered significant damage. Work is progressing on a war footing to restore normal train services at the earliest," an official said.

Train services in Jammu and Kashmir, Punjab, and Himachal Pradesh were severely affected due to flash floods and heavy rains that began on August 26. "In an effort to ease travel for stranded passengers, special flood relief trains were operated on August 28 and 30," he added.

"Uttar Kranti and Sealdah Express trains are running. In the coming days, we will start four trains in phase two. These trains are Swaraj Express, Pooja Express, Vande Bharat Express, and Andaman Express," he said.

Flood special trains continue to run in the affected areas of Jammu Division, transporting essential relief materials as well as affected passengers, the officials said. "These services are providing timely support to people in Katra, Reasi, Bakkal, Dugga, Sawalkote, and Sangaldan," the official said.

The trains have so far ferried over 3,000 passengers since September 8. The initiative was widely appreciated by passengers for providing a safe and convenient travel option while road transport remained severely disrupted due to the floods.

Senior Divisional Commercial Manager, Uchit Singhal, said this initiative greatly facilitated the movement of flood-affected people.

Following heavy rains and waterlogging in the Jammu Division of Northern Railway, flood-like conditions caused severe disruption of rail traffic in the region.

"As a result, operations of all trains running in the Jammu Division were suspended. The intense flooding badly affected several railway bridges," an official said.

Railway Safety Commissioner (CRS) Deswal, along with Principal Executive Director (RDSO) S K Sapra, Chief Bridge Engineer R P Singh, and Divisional Railway Manager Vivek Kumar, conducted a detailed inspection of the affected bridges.

"The purpose of the inspection was to assess the extent of the damage caused by heavy rains and flooding, and to expedite the completion of repair work to restore full rail operations in Jammu Division," a railway spokesperson said.

The officials gave strict instructions to ensure the timely and quality completion of restoration work, prioritising passenger safety. The railway administration remains committed to restoring normal train services at the earliest possible time. PTI AB NSD NSD