Title - Via Tunnel

Kashmir valley is all set to be connected to the rest of India through the 11-km long Pirpanchal railway tunnel which connects Cheral village in Banihal in Jammu division with Qazigund in Kashmir.

The tunnel is part of the 345-km Udhampur-Srinagar-Baramulla rail project of the northern railways, which is scheduled for completion by 2018.

Last December, the trail run of the tunnel, which runs 0.4 km beneath the Jawahar Tunnel, was conducted smoothly and the train covered the 11-km distance from southern side of the mountain in Banihal to north in Qazigund in 6.6 minutes.

Built at the cost of Rs 1,300 crores, it would reduce distance between Banihal and Qazigund by 17-km.

“The project is unique in India as the New Austrian Tunnelling Method (NATM) was used first time in mass capacity,” HCC official was quoted saying.

Its construction, which was scheduled for completion by 2009, was awarded to the HCC by IRCON in 2006 but the completion period overran by three years.

Aligned straight from north to south, the tunnel is believed to be 100 per cent water-proof and is equipped with fire fighting system. It has a three meter wide concrete road running aside the track throughout its length for maintenance and emergency purpose.

At least 60 percent of the manpower required in the project (both skilled and unskilled) were state subjects, the HCC official said.

Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh is scheduled to commission the tunnel on June 25. Opening of this tunnel, longest in India and third longest in Asia after Taihang Tunnel (28 km) and Wushaoling Tunnel (21 km) in China, would ease transportation problem to Kashmir especially during winter when snowy weather forces closure of Jammu-Srinagar Highway, sometimes for weeks together.

“We have already handed over the rail line to the authorities and it will be commissioned next month,” said Sharanappa Yalal, Project Manager of the Pir Panchal Tunnel, executed by Hindustan Construction Company (HCC) Ltd.