Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited Jammu and Kashmir on Tuesday, February 20, 2024, to inaugurate, dedicate, and lay the foundation stone of multiple development projects worth over Rs 32,000 crore in various sectors such as health, education, rail, road, aviation, petroleum, and civic infrastructure.
PM Modi also flagged off the first electric train in the valley from Baramulla Station, which was made possible by the electrification of the 185.66 route kilometre (RKM) Baramulla - Srinagar - Banihal - Sangaldan section costing Rs 470.23 crore.
The existing train services from Baramulla to Banihal will now be extended up to Sangaldan, which is located near the district headquarters of Ramban. The inaugural run of the service was from the Srinagar station.
Among the key projects that PM Modi inaugurated were the railway projects worth over Rs 16,000 crore in the region. These included a 48.1 km portion of the new rail line under the Udhampur - Srinagar - Baramulla Rail Link Project (USBRL), which is the country's longest and most challenging railway project.
The Banihal - Khari - Sumber - Sangaldan section of the USBRL costed Rs 15,863 crore and involved the construction of the country's longest railway tunnel spanning 12.77 km. The USBRL project will provide all-weather transport connectivity to the valley, replacing unreliable mountainous roads and footpaths.
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