Steel Over the Chenab: The Bridge That Finally Links Kashmir to the Nation

Inauguration of the world's tallest rail bridge marks a historic milestone in Kashmir’s direct railway integration with India, redefining travel, trade, and strategic access.

Raj Chaubey 2 weeks agoLast Updated: June 9, 2025

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Reviewed & Published by HH News Desk

For decades, the dream of a direct rail link between Kashmir and the rest of India sat somewhere between aspiration and impossibility. Mountain passes, landslides, political storms—every obstacle seemed stacked against it. But with the recent inauguration of the Chenab Rail Bridge, that narrative has finally turned a corner. The bridge is not just another piece of infrastructure—it’s an emblem of something far bigger: endurance, ambition, and the power of connection.

Higher Than the Eiffel, Stronger Than the Odds

At first glance, the statistics sound almost unreal. The Chenab Bridge, which now proudly spans the namesake river in Jammu and Kashmir’s Reasi district, rises 359 metres above the riverbed. For context, that’s about 35 metres taller than the Eiffel Tower. Built using close to 30,000 metric tonnes of steel, this structure has more iron in it than ten typical railway bridges combined—something Prime Minister Modi pointed out during the launch with clear pride.

There’s a quiet poetry in that fact. Ten bridges’ worth of steel, all concentrated into one colossal arc of human achievement, braving Himalayan gusts and seismic tremors, all to connect a region that’s long been cut off—physically and emotionally—from the rest of the country.

One Railway, A Thousand Stories

The Udhampur-Srinagar-Baramulla Railway Link (USBRL) has been decades in the making. Not for lack of trying, but because the region threw everything at it—altitude, weather, geology. The 272-kilometre-long project includes 36 tunnels and nearly 950 bridges. Some sections took years just to carve out. But now, trains can travel from Katra to Srinagar in around three hours, compared to the winding 6–7-hour road journey that people have had to endure for years.

As reported by The New Indian Express, many in the Valley are seeing this not just as a connectivity project, but as a historic reset. There’s genuine emotion behind this development, especially for the older generation that never thought they’d live to see a passenger train glide into the Kashmir Valley.

A Bridge for People, Not Just Trains

Beyond the spectacle of engineering, what’s happening on the ground is just as important. With a stable and weather-resistant rail link, farmers can now send apples, walnuts, and saffron to markets faster and fresher. Small businesses in Baramulla, Handwara, or Pulwama suddenly have the option of scaling beyond local bazaars. Even in terms of tourism, things are expected to change. According to Livemint, this rail link could potentially double the tourist footfall during peak seasons, especially with the introduction of Vande Bharat Express services to the region.

But perhaps more than all of this, the bridge brings with it something harder to quantify: a sense of being seen. For a region that has often felt peripheral—geographically and politically—the message is clear: you matter, and you’re part of the larger journey.

Not Just Civilian Infrastructure

There’s also a strategic layer to this story. As noted in a piece by The Economic Times, the Chenab Bridge, and the larger rail corridor it forms a part of, will drastically improve logistical flexibility for India’s military presence in the area. In a zone where road access can be cut off for days by landslides or snow, a dependable rail route could be a game-changer for both rapid deployments and relief operations.

Moreover, the bridge has been built to withstand intense stress—from 266 km/h winds to seismic shocks. It’s not just a bridge that can carry weight—it’s built to carry the weight of time, politics, and unpredictability.

Reactions from the Valley

Reasi, Anantnag, Sopore—wherever you go right now in Kashmir, the reaction to the bridge is striking. Pride, yes. Relief, certainly. But also something warmer, quieter. At a small tea stall outside Srinagar, one shopkeeper reportedly said to a visiting journalist: “So many promises over the years. This one finally came through.”

Social media platforms, especially among younger Kashmiris, are flooded with drone footage of the bridge. From Instagram reels to Twitter threads, people are celebrating not just the steel and stone, but the symbolism. It’s the idea that perhaps, finally, the distance isn’t so wide anymore.

A Political Undertone, But Not Just That

Prime Minister Modi used the inauguration to spotlight the government’s commitment to infrastructure in the region. “This is a bridge of unity,” he said, “a path to prosperity.” Predictably, there’s been some political pushback from opposition parties, who argue that the bridge alone can’t solve deeper issues. But on this point, even critics have acknowledged the bridge’s transformative potential.

Even for those who remain skeptical of the Centre’s broader Kashmir policy, the Chenab Rail Bridge is hard to dismiss. It’s here. It’s real. And it’s already changing lives.

A Bridge Toward Belonging

India’s railways have always been more than just trains—they’ve been lifelines, carrying hope and hustle from one end of the country to another. The Chenab Bridge may be a technical marvel, but it’s also something far more intimate. It’s a bridge between memories and movement, between the past and what lies ahead.

As the first passenger trains begin their journey over this giant arc of steel, Kashmir isn’t just getting closer to Delhi on the map—it’s finally stepping into the same rhythm, the same railway pulse that beats through the rest of the nation.

Source: Reporting referenced from Bhaskar English, Livemint, The New Indian Express, and The Economic Times.

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Author Profile

Raj Chaubey

Reporting Fellow at Hindustan Herald

Raj Chaubey is a Reporting Fellow at Hindustan Herald, specializing in political and geopolitical news. As a student at Delhi University, Raj combines academic rigor with a commitment to investigative journalism, aiming to uncover the broader implications of current events. His daily articles strive to offer our audience a deeper understanding of complex political landscapes and their global connections.