India's longest Railway Tunnel to be built in Uttarakhand

It is Indian Railways' proposed route for the Char Dham Railway to connect the Char Dham pilgrimage of Uttarakhand.

India's longest Railway Tunnel to be built in Uttarakhand

New Delhi: Rail Vikas Nigam Limited (RVNL) a PSU of the Ministry of Railway is executing India's Longest Railway tunnel, spanning 14 kilometers between Devprayag and Janasu, which will be part of the 125 km Rishikesh–Karnaprayag line.

It is Indian Railways' proposed route for the Char Dham Railway to connect the Char Dham pilgrimage of Uttarakhand. The line is also part of an Indian geostrategic initiative to build infrastructure along the India-China border to discourage Chinese expansion.

This line is connecting across five districts of the state: Dehradun, Tehri Garhwal, Pauri Garhwal, Rudraprayag, and Chamoli. Devprayag, Srinagar, Gauchar, Rudraprayag, and Karnaprayag are the most important towns on the route.

The Rs 16,200 crore project will reduce travel time between Rishikesh and Karnaprayag from 6-7 hours to 2+1⁄2 hours. It was planned to cross 16 bridges, and 105 km (85 percent) will run through tunnels. A 15.1-km tunnel, reportedly India's longest, will be built between Devprayag and Lachmoli.

The line will have 12 stations, 17 tunnels, and 35 bridges, and is expected to be completed by 2024-25.

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