Soaring above the riverbed of the ancient Chenab, the railway bridge in Jammu and Kashmir’s Reasi district will stand taller than the iconic Eiffel Tower by 30 metres.

Also, at an elevation of 359 metres, it will be the world’s highest railway bridge once completed.

With the launch of the bridge’s main arch this week, the mega-scale endeavour spanning across one of the toughest terrains in the world is slowly inching towards becoming a reality.

“We have begun the work on installations of the main arch between two sides of the bridge. We have launched the main- arch,” said M K Gupta, Member Engineering, Railway Board, reports Economic Times.

What makes the bridge significant is that it will facilitate direct connectivity into the Kashmir Valley, which remains sparsely connected by the railways when compared to rest of the country.

However, the ambitious project rail project goes all the way back to the 2000s when the need for better rail connectivity in the Himalayan state was observed by policymakers. Declared as a national project by the then railway ministry, the project, unfortunately, was put on halt in 2008, with the authorities citing fear over the stability of the bridge and safety of passengers due to frequent high-velocity winds in the area.

Fast-forward 2017, the Indian Railways has equipped itself technically and technologically to put the project back on track. The gargantuan responsibility of erecting the colossal structure is being undertaken by Konkan Railways in collaboration with AFCONS Infrastructure Limited on a mega budget of ₹1,250 crore.

Part of the Udhampur-Srinagar-Baramulla Rail Link (USBRL) project, the 1.3km long steel and concrete arch bridge plays the crucial role of being the only link in the 111-km stretch between Katra and Baniha.

The construction of the bridge is not just any regular railway undertaking. Building a bridge that can carry heavy freight across a gorge requires the kind of reinforcement that can defy gravity and even withstand earthquakes.

A magnanimous arrangement of cable crane spanning across 915 metres, which is believed to be world’s longest, has been entailed to carry heavyweight segments from either end of the bridge.

As many as 1,300 workers and 300 engineers are part of the dedicated workforce who have been working round-the-clock on the site.

According to the concerned authorities, the project was chalked down following in-depth research on areas like geophysics, seismic studies and slope stability. Many national and international consultants were also roped in for inference during various stages of the project.

While the construction work is being carried forth on both sides simultaneously, raising the main arch was a task in itself. An arrangement of high endurance pylons installed on both sides of the river along with two auxiliary self-propelled cable cranes was used to tow temporary auxiliary ropes across the pylons.

An engineer who is part of the project explained that these ropes were used to support the partly finished arch parts as both the embankments of Chenab have hard cherty dolomite and quartzite forming cliffs.

Interestingly, the launch has been performed in a typical manner of serial increment. This way additional sections can be fixed to the rear of the superstructure unit following subsequent launches.

Massive workshops have been commissioned at both ends of the bridge that will undertake fabrication of steel structure. Alongside, three huge tunnels of varying lengths are being constructed by the Railways on the other side of Chenab.

With a lifespan of 120 years, the iconic bridge will be able to withstand high-velocity winds up to 260 km per hour, a remarkable achievement indeed.

Expected to be completed by May 2019, we hope that the project will soon flag off rail operations and enable better connectivity in the region.

Source: https://www.thebetterindia.com/120537/railways-mind-blowing-plan-to-span-kashmirs-mighty-chenab-will-amaze-you/

Anti-black money day, gives us an opportunity to reflect on the work done in the last three-and-a-half years to move towards a new India—an India where every citizen has a better quality of life, an India free of corruption, and an India which is recognised as a nation of honest government, honest business and honest politics.

Ever since Prime Minister Narendra Modi came into government at the Centre, he has consistently worked towards these objectives, particularly through efforts to fight corruption and black money, and transform the way the country works: From the setting up of the special investigation team (SIT) against black money in the first Cabinet meeting of this government to various steps like renegotiation of international treaties with Singapore, Mauritius, Switzerland and Cyprus, strengthening the Benami Transaction Act and notifying its rules to start taking action under this act, laws to tackle the menace of money stashed away abroad, strict action against the loan defaulters of the system and zero tolerance against corruption at high places.

Demonetisation of high-denomination currency was among the boldest initiatives ever taken for an economy of the size of India, with no parallel in history. Because of the high proportion of Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes, which were growing every year by leaps and bounds since 2004, nearly 86% of currency in circulation comprised high-value notes. Of these, nearly one-third amounting to Rs 6 lakh crore was held in currency which was never in the banking system for long periods of time,leading one to believe that it was illegitimate money hoarded or used for illicit transactions, possibly also for terror funding.

This bold transformational initiative showed the sense of urgency and commitment of a decisive leadership to take bold action against corruption, black money, terror financing and counterfeit currency. Clearly, the move has been highly successful and has moved the nation towards greater formalisation of the economy.

Nearly 5 million bank accounts of workers were opened post November 8, 2016, ensuring that they get minimum wages, which were increased by an unprecedented 42% by the government last year. Over 10 million additional employees are enrolled under the provident fund, giving social sector benefits to their families. Over 13 million workers have been registered under Employees’ State Insurance (ESIC), and the employees as well as their families are enjoying the health benefits as a direct outcome of the formalisation of their engagement, which was hitherto never reported.

More and more taxpayers are being added to the system and digital payments have risen sharply since demonetisation, registering unprecedented in the post demonetisation period. The Bharat Interface for Money (BHIM) mobile app has the potential to transform the way payments are made, enabling the common man to be connected with the digital world, with his mobile phone becoming his bank.

Because of larger availability of low-cost deposits in banks, lending rates are on the decline with housing loans available at as low an interest rate as 8.3% per annum. The revenues of urban local bodies have also shot up post-demonetisation and financial savings of households have also started increasing after many years. It is a matter of great satisfaction that most of the money has now been deposited in the banking system. This money now has an identity, a name and address which brings accountability to all the depositors.

Some opponents of demonetisation are unable to fathom the basic principle that with this accountability not only will the money deposited in the bank have to be explained but also other transactions in such accounts, which will then become taxable, generating greater revenues for the government to serve the welfare initiatives for the poor of India. Deposits worth nearly Rs 3.68 lakh crore in around 2.2 million bank accounts are currently under scrutiny. Nearly 224,000 shell companies have been struck off from the registrar of companies, plugging avenues for escaping the tax net and opening up transactions for scrutiny.

The people of India recognise the initiatives taken by Prime Minister Modi and have consistently supported these measures against corruption and black money. Election after election have shown the people’s trust in the leadership of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the confidence in the prime minister’s ability to transform India.

Coupled with the goods and services tax (GST) and other measures taken to bring all business and trade within the ambit of taxation, one can clearly see India moving into a new growth trajectory. Honest payment of taxes on a wider tax base will enable tax rates to moderate, bring down inflation further and make India an attractive destination for investment, leading to more and more working opportunities for the youth of our country, encouraging entrepreneurship, and making India stand tall in the comity of nations for its ease of doing business in a corruption-free environment.

Source: https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/economy/policy/view-demonetisation-has-moved-the-nation-towards-greater-formalisation-of-the-economy/articleshow/61553120.cms

Reform has become the trope of our times. After nearly a quarter century of hop, side-step and crawl, the Indian economy remained shackled to shibboleths till 2014, when India languished, to offer only one example, at a pathetic 142 in the ease of doing business index. Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s intense effort for change is delivering outcomes: an unprecedented leap has taken India to step 100 on this ladder. The PM’s next destination is the top 50. It will happen.

But reform is only part of Narendra Modi story. He has set himself a far more daunting challenge: to liberate 100 million households, or nearly half a billion Indians, from the whiplash of poverty, into a world of aspiration, empowerment and gender equality. This mission too has a deadline: 2022.

This will not happen by reform alone. It needs a radical transformation in resource mobilisation and a shift in the focus of public investment across class lines to turn the impoverished into masters of their own economic emancipation. The existing broadband of unjust hierarchies is not easy to alter, however; nor will any deep establishment accept change without a fight for preservation of its entitlements.

India’s poor were trapped under at least three glass ceilings. The first was exclusion from banking. This, crucially, denied them credit facilities and made bank loans the preserve of a small demographic pyramid where, as it tapered to the peak, loans became fatter and cosier. This was not crony capitalism; this was crony corruption in capital letters. Exclusion from banking also made the poor vulnerable to middlemen within transfer institutions. Cash attracts sticky fingers.

Prime Minister Modi designed the architecture of change through a series of logical, inter-connected decisions. Many observers and all partisans could not conceive the second or third step when he ventured on the first.

It began with Jan Dhan Yojna, the largest banking inclusion project in history. Within a startling three months, over 300 million new accounts were opened for those who had never crossed the threshold of a bank before. Critics packed the airwaves with jeers, laughing at the fact that these were accounts without money. They missed the point completely. For the first time, banks were opening doors for those without money, rather than for those with cash. The multi-dimensional results are in. Among them is an uncomfortable fact for the old critics: those 30.24 crore “zero” accounts now have Rs 66,466 crore as deposits. The poor, particularly in the villages, have secure savings.

Mudra, a scheme correctly described as “funding the unfunded”, brought down the second glass ceiling: it offered business loans to the poor, without collateral. Mudra could not have happened without Jan Dhan. Mudra is rescuing small-scale vendors from usurious moneylenders, even as it seeds new self-employment options for those who need base capital between Rs 50,000 to Rs 10 lakh. Its categories tell the story: from value addition to small shops or street vendors to domestic productivity through sewing machines, poultry, dairy, bee-keeping, et al.

The revolutionary element within Mudra is gender. Women, with their characteristic resolve and silence, are responding in extraordinary numbers. Since Mudra became operational on 8 April 2015, 9.13 crore loans have been taken. Of these 6.89 crore, or 76%, were taken by women. Impressively, 55% of the loans went to people from Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and Other Backward Classes, while 13% went to minorities.

The third ceiling was arguably the most difficult, for the glass in this ceiling was mixed with a granite called black money, and the underground economy is protected by the most powerful of vested interests. The policy target was to neutralise black money, expand tax-compliance, and use hidden cash to recapitalise a banking system infected by NPAs.

Aspirin does not cure cancer. Black money needed chemotherapy. Demonetisation led the assault against a pernicious, life-threatening disease rife through the economy. In but 12 months since 8 November 2016, as objective commentators have noted, the banking sector has been rejuvenated by demonetisation. Five months before demonetisation, gross NPAs were around Rs 6 lakh crore; today, banks can afford to lower interest rates. There has also been a massive crackdown on shell companies which are carriers of the black money virus; some 2,00,000 have been deregistered for not filing returns.

The positive impact of transformation on the lives of the poor cannot be fully captured by mere figures, but the number of direct beneficiaries within the last three years has risen astronomically, from 10.71 crore  to 35.7 crore this year. The amount of money they have received has gone up from Rs 7,367.7 crore to Rs 74,607.55 crore – by 10 times. Middlemen are licking their wounds and probably mobilising against the government. The number of DBT schemes has shot up from just 28 in 2013-14 to 314 in this current financial year. Over 40 crore people are getting benefits directly into their bank accounts. It is also estimated that the exchequer has saved Rs 57,029 crore in the process: change, as we know, tends to pay for itself.

What happens when glass ceilings are shattered? There is some debris on the floor, and there is some noise in the air. But those who think that election results are shaped by debris rather than substance, and political argument by noise rather than debate, have no clue about what influences an electorate’s mind.

He has one life, said Prime Minister Modi recently, and one mission: to reform, perform and transform. India, tired of stagnation, is eager for a New India.

Source: https://blogs.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/thesiegewithin/modis-mission-2022-government-is-methodically-shattering-the-glass-ceilings-that-trap-indians-in-poverty/

India was transfixed and transformed a year ago on 8 November, when Prime Minister Narendra Modi, in his resolute war against corruption and black money, demonetized Rs500 and Rs1,000 currency notes. The political verdict came swiftly with stunning wins for the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand, and rapid government formation in Manipur and Goa. The prime minister’s popularity reached new heights and his approval ratings soared to levels rarely seen in democracies. The people of India recognized that a surgical strike was required to curtail illicit activities and blessed demonetisation. Thus, in political terms, demonetisation has already proven to be a resounding success.

On the other hand, in economic terms, a heated debate is under way whether demonetisation has been a success or not. Several reputed economists have pronounced their judgements on demonetisation.

For instance, Dr Raghuram Rajan has mentioned that he believed that while there might be long-term benefits, the short-term economic costs of demonetisation would outweigh them and that there were alternatives available to achieve the main goals. He has chosen not to elaborate what he thought the long-term benefits might be nor has he quantified the short-term costs.

Dr Manmohan Singh has estimated the cost of demonetisation to be 2% of gross domestic product. These quick assessments appear specious. Zhou Enlai, when asked in 1972 about what he thought the impact of the French Revolution of 1789 was, is said to have commented that it was too early to tell. When revolutionary changes take place, it takes years, decades, or even centuries before the impact of such transformations can be studied and commented upon.

Note that we lack scientific data and thorough analytical studies on the economic impact of demonetisation. For any massively complex system, judging the impact of a large disruption requires careful understanding of influence channels, distilling its impact on multifarious variables and finally, measuring its bearing, if any, on a variety of outputs. An economy as varied as India’s is highly complex with multiple inputs, not-completely-understood dynamics, many agents and actors with different motivations, and finally, outputs which are not measurable with accuracy or certainty. It will take many years to filter out the economic impact attributable to demonetisation and, indeed, this bold move and its implications will, quite probably, be the subject of hundreds of dissertations. Consequently, any snap judgements will be coloured largely by ideology and opinion.

Some data is beginning to emerge on how the economic trajectory actually played out as opposed to estimates of how the various models predicted that they would play out.

Since demonetisation, the government has embarked on another ambitious bipartisan reform of consolidating various levies and taxes in different states into one comprehensive goods and services tax (GST): such a large reform intervention also creates its own changes in the economy.

To appreciate the changes that demonetisation brought about, we need to carefully choose and measure the relevant short-term high-frequency indicators and a few emerging long-term indicators which point to the direction that the economy has since taken.

High-frequency and quantitative indicators like (1) cash-to-GDP ratio, (2) volume of digital payments, (3) number of new registered taxpayers, and (4) estimate of “unaccounted for” money and the number of tax notices sent indicate that demonetisation has generated material changes. The cash-to-GDP ratio is now down to 9.7%, from 11.3% pre-8 November last year. This cash is now in the banking system which has helped swell the current accounts and savings accounts balances of banks: this will allow them to lend and invest more, and at lower rates. Digital payments, at Rs50,000 crore in the month of October 2017, are up 41% year-on-year. The finance minister has stated that 9.1 million taxpayers have been added to the tax net as a result of actions taken by the income tax department during fiscal year 2017. Further, the ministry of finance has indicated that between Rs3 trillion and Rs4.2 trillion is “unexplained” during the cash deposit rush post-demonetisation and hence has sent out 1.8 million notices to assesses: apart from the one-time benefit to revenue of such “declarations”, these moves could bring significant stock and flow of incomes into the tax net. This data shows that demonetisation has had a positive impact on the formalization of the economy, improving the tax base and hastening the use of digital payments. Consequently, it is quite plausible to argue that these effects, which will clearly have an ongoing GDP impact, could easily swamp the impact of a one-time 2% decline in GDP.

Apart from these purely economic factors, there is another more profound behavioural change that has been accomplished. A new normal has been established—Indians are paying their taxes and moving towards a less-cash society. There is a pronounced trend towards tax compliance driven by the belief that the system is working to reward honest taxpayers even as it makes life difficult for those who have been used to evading or underpaying taxes. GST and the implementation of the benami transactions Act make it even more difficult for anyone in the economic chain to opt out of the taxation system.

Massive reforms like demonetisation cannot be measured solely by using economic parameters but need to take into account the structural shift that such reforms induce in society. Societal and long-term economic changes are difficult to measure and require more reasoned, detailed, and patient analyses: this should increase our resolve to do deeper research rather than jumping to hasty, ill-informed conclusions. demonetisation has provided Indian citizens a unique opportunity to re-imagine not only their currency, but also their own social mores, honesty, compliance with law, and their willingness to change and adapt to a more transparent and New India. We should celebrate this New India.

Jayant Sinha is minister of state for civil aviation and a member of Parliament from Hazaribagh, Jharkhand. The views expressed are personal.

Source: http://www.livemint.com/Specials/8bX1IDRQ1FK3qpMRNrFbAO/Demonetisation-A-resounding-success.html

The Railways’ new timetable promises not just faster trains but has set aside hours for maintenance work across the country every day for greater passenger safety.

‘Trains at a Glance’ for 2017-2018, which came into effect yesterday, shows that the timetable has been designed to help engineers and others undertake regular maintenance work in blocks of two to four hours.

The maintenance will be for fixed infrastructure such as tracks, signalling gears and overhead equipment.

The emphasis on maintenance assumes importance in view of some recent train accidents. At least 20 people were killed after a train derailed in Khatauli in Uttar Pradesh on August 19 because tracks were being repaired.

Soon after taking over the railway portfolio, minister Piyush Goyal had said no demand for blocks from any rail section should be denied.

Blocks are periods when trains are not allowed on a track so that maintenance work can be carried out.

Currently, on highly dense routes such as the Delhi- Howrah and Delhi-Mumbai sectors, there is a train on the tracks every 10 minutes, leaving engineers with little time for maintenance work.

But with trains running faster under the the new timetable, hours will be taken out of the schedule for maintenance work.

A total of 65 trains on the Northern Railways will run faster than before. The national transporter has reduced the running time of close to 500 trains across zones from anywhere from 15 minute to three hours, officials told earlier this week.

Under the new timetable, trains have been either bunched together or shifted on different tracks to make way for maintenance blocks.

So, some trains have been rescheduled, some mail or express trains regulated and some passenger trains short terminated in each section where asset maintenance works are scheduled. This, the Railways believe, will ensure passenger safety.

The Railways will also have a timetable for its employees which will enumerate operational details of all trains and for each division. It will contain information on gradients, running time, locomotive hauling capacity, margin for drivers to make up and speed restrictions, and other information to assist operators.

Railway tracks are inspected daily on foot in addition to inspection by push and motor trolleys once a month. The assistant divisional engineer reviews it once in two or three months depending on the route s importance.

In the new timetable, virtually every rail zone has faster trains. The Northern Railway timetable has three new trains for the sector — Tejas, Humsafar and Antyodaya Express.

Source:  https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/industry/transportation/railways/new-rail-timetable-earmarks-blocks-for-maintenance-safety/articleshow/61469321.cms?utm_source=contentofinterest&utm_medium=text&utm_campaign=cppst

The Indian Railways may not be able to provide confirmed berths to all those who book tickets, but it will soon start predicting on its website if waitlisted tickets have any chance of getting confirmed at all. Mining its own historical data of passenger operations and booking patterns for the first time, the Railways is creating a complex algorithm for its ticket-booking software that will predict the probability of waitlisted tickets getting confirmed at the time of booking.

Railway Minister Piyush Goyal, who came up with the idea, has ordered that the new predictive service along with a revamped, more user-friendly ticket-booking website and a mobile app be ready by the end of this year, sources said.

The job of devising the algorithm, which will involve writing the code from scratch, has been given to the Centre for Railway Information Systems (CRIS), the software arm of the Railways, which also runs the ticket-booking website IRCTC.co.in.

“It is an exciting project and we will be delivering it shortly. The algorithm will analyse past trends of passenger bookings and help predict probabilities as accurately as possible,” Vandana Nanda, managing director, CRIS, told The Indian Express.

The algorithm will take into account 13 years’ worth of historical data to arrive at a “robust workable model,” officials said.

One of the major challenges, though, is that peak seasons and booking patterns of trains change every year based on the Hindu festival calendar.

For instance, Diwali, Dussehra, Durga Puja and Chhath holiday periods, which see a deluge of passenger traffic, take place on different days every year.

Engineers are trying to figure out how to factor that in for the algorithm to work.

“The disclaimer would be that the percentage of probability of confirmation shown is merely indicative,” said an official.

Until now, private players have tried offering predictability service without any affiliation with Railways. Officials said none of them is reliable as they do not have the scale, wherewithal or the database the Railways has for “such a complex algorithm to work”.

“Once the Railways officially starts indicating chances of confirmation, smaller private services will phase out,” said a senior Railway official.

Berths in all long-distance trains get filled within minutes of the ticket windows are open at 8am, 120 days prior to the date of the journey. Nearly 13 lakh tickets are booked every day against a reserved accommodation of 10.5 lakh berths across classes.

This follows lengthy waiting lists, which keep decreasing as and when cancellations take place, but without any official way of knowing if the waitlisted tickets stand any chance of getting confirmed.

Source: http://indianexpress.com/article/india/new-railways-model-to-predict-chances-of-ticket-confirmation-4920090/

Passengers of Rajdhani and Shatabdi will now get text messages on their mobile phones if their scheduled trains get delayed by more than an hour.

Currently, the SMS messages are being sent to wait-listed passengers after the confirmation of their berths.

Railways made the much-needed facility operational on Saturday for all Rajdhani and Shatabdi trains, said a senior Railway Ministry official involved with the project, adding that the SMS facility would be extended to other trains too in a phased manner.

Developed by the Centre for Railway Information Systems (CRIS), the information technological arm of the Railways, the SMS facility is considered to be an important service for passengers.

The official said in order to avail this facility, passengers are advised to mention their mobile numbers on the reservation slips.

It is a passenger-friendly free service for which the Railways bear the cost of SMS.

There was a trial run of the service on a few Rajdhani and Shatabdi trains.

There were a few glitches found during the trial run which was addressed. Now the service is fully operational in all Rajdhani and Shatabdi trains, he said.

There are total 23 pairs of Rajdhani and 26 pairs of Shatabdi trains running across the country.

Though Railways has increased the speed of many trains to reduce travel time, some trains are running late due to various reasons like track repair.

Source: www.timesnownews.com/business-economy/article/india-will-be-in-top-50-in-global-ease-of-doing-business-ranking-within-2-years-amitabh-kant/118757

सिम कार्ड से लेकर बैंक अकाउंट तक आधार कार्ड को जरूरी बनाने के लिए सरकार तमाम कोशिशें कर रही है। अब ऑनलाइन रेल टिकट बुक करने के लिए भी आधार जरूरी हो गया है। ऑनलाइन रेल टिकट बुक करने की वेबसाइट आईआरसीटीसी ने बताया कि अगर आप एक महीने में 6 से ज्यादा टिकट बुक करना चाहते हैं तो आपको अपने आईआरसीटीसी अकाउंट से आधार कार्ड लिंक करना होगा। यानी, अगर आपका आईआरसीटीसी अकाउंट आधार कार्ड से लिंक नहीं है तो आप महीने में 6 से ज्यादा टिकट बुक नहीं करा पाएंगे।

आईआरसीटीसी ने एक ट्वीट कर जानकारी दी कि महीने में 6 से ज्यादा टिकट बुक करने के लिए आधार कार्ड से लिंक करना जरूरी है। बता दें कि आधार से आईआरसीटीसी अकाउंट लिंक करने के बावजूद आप महीने में 12 से ज्यादा टिकट बुक नहीं करा सकते हैं।

1) आईआरसीटीसी की टिकट बुकिंग वेबसाइट खोलें (https://www.irctc.co.in)
2) अपनी लॉगइन आईडी और पासवर्ड डालने के बाद, ‘ माई प्रोफाइल ‘ पर क्लिक करें
3) प्रोफाइल सेक्शन में जाने के बाद, आधार केवाईसी पर क्लिक करने के बाद एक नया पेज खुल कर आ जाएगा।
4) अपना 12 अंकों का आधार नंबर डालें और ‘सेंड OTP’ पर क्लिक करें
5) आपको अपने आधार से रजिस्टर्ड नंबर पर OTP आएगा।
6) उस ओटीपी को वेबसाइट में ओटीपी वाली जगह पर डालें। अब आपका आईआरसीटीसी अकाउंट आधार से वेरिफाइड हो चुका है।
7) कुछ ही देर में आपको मेसेज मिलेगा कि आपकी केवाईसी डिटेल्स सफलतापूर्वक अपडेट कर दी गई हैं।

Source: https://navbharattimes.indiatimes.com/business/business-news/heres-how-you-can-link-irctc-with-aadhaar-to-book-more-railway-tickets/articleshow/61461059.cms

The work to replace the 87-year-old steel girder, which in normal course could have taken eight days, was completed in a record three-and-half days by the Nagpur Central Railway following which traffic on Kamptee Road was thrown open Wednesday morning.

DCP (Traffic) Ravindra Singh Pardeshi said, “After Central Railway completed the work, traffic was allowed on Kamptee Road by 10.30am.”

The railway officials burned midnight oil following requests from the Kamptee Road gurdwara members to complete the work as a huge procession was set to pass through the under bridge on Wednesday. Divisional railway manager (DRM) Brijesh Kumar Gupta agreed it was a big challenge to complete the work in record time to pave way for the procession.

“When I got calls from the Sikh community requesting that work be expedited, we worked extra hard. I’m really happy that with better coordination from state officials, police and railway headquarters at Mumbai, we could accomplish the tedious task, that too without any detention of trains,” said Gupta.

The work to replace a new 20-tonne girder in the 60 metre area along both sides of the track was completed in four hours, between 3.50am and 7.50am, after taking a block (stopping trains in both directions). This was the only slot available without disrupting rail traffic.

The block was taken after 16687 Mangalore-Katra Navyug Express went past the spot. The first train to pass after completion of work was 22135 Nagpur-Rewa Express. Loco pilots have been issued speed caution of 20 kmph while moving trains from the spot. When the repair work started three days ago it was 10 kmph.

The work to replace the corroded steel girder was planned 15 days later. It was installed by the British in the 1930s. Ahead of the proposed work, an inspection of the spot was being carried out on Saturday afternoon by senior section engineer and bridges inspector when the crack was noticed in one of the cross girders. There were four such cross girders.

By the time the damage was noticed, five trains had already passed over the spot and both officials felt it would be dangerous to operate trains. They immediately called up DRM Gupta who directed to suspended train movement on up line (Nagpur-Itarsi). Movement of incoming and outgoing trains though continued from one line.

Gupta says it was a screw girder hence it was more difficult to work on that. It had corroded due to human droppings from passing trains. “The biggest challenge was to mobilize men but headquarters responded well to the critical situation and help from chief bridge engineer MS Chouhan, Mumbai, and Bridge Workshop, Manmad, came in time. In all the three days, at least 120-140 railwaymen were at work and best was that various works were done parallel,” said Gupta.

The girder was manufactured in Central Railway workshop in Manmad but was assembled in two days at the spot, by the time other works like bringing down of OHE, setting of cranes, dismantling of tracks. The new girder has a life of over 100 years, provided that it is not corroded. “Passengers should be sensible while using train toilets,” said Gupta.

Gupta said this was unusual work aftermath the Barbadpur and Sindhi Railway tragedy when tracks were washed out.

On a solution to the bottleneck near the RUB, Gupta said, “We are ready to create a passage for traffic movement but the state government will have to bear the expenses.”

Source: https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/nagpur/to-facilitate-sikh-rally-c-railway-mends-broken-bridge-in-3-5-days/articleshow/61427250.cms?from=mdr