Chief Secretary, Dr. Arun Kumar Mehta today along with Deputy Commissioner and other officers visited the World's highest steel arch rail bridge site near Jyotipuram in district Reasi which is nearing its completion.On the occasion, Dr Mehta had a detailed inspection of this structure in presence of the engineers of the executing agency and officers of Indian Railways. They apprised him about the unique features of this engineering marvel which has no parallel in the world and stands about 29 meters taller than the Eiffel Tower in Paris.
The Chief Secretary appreciated the engineering staff for moving towards completing this challenging task. He observed that this feat in itself speaks volumes about the capacity of engineers of our nation and boosts the morale of others as well. He said that this is a pride for the citizens and is a steel monument.Dr Mehta took this occasion to impress upon the district administration to take immediate measures for turning this architectural marvel into a tourist spot. He observed that the location of the bridge is also impressive in terms of its aesthetic appeal as it lies in the lap of nature. He made out that with little interventions the spot could turn into a great attraction for the tourists.
He enjoined upon the Divisional and District administrations to take measures for better upkeep of the road from Reasi to Bridge site. He advised them to install crash barriers wherever required. He also instructed for improvement of road between Katra and Reasi forthwith.Dr Mehta maintained that the District Reasi has highest tourist footfall in J&K which nearly crosses a crore mark each year. He made out that the District has a very good potential to attract many more people to its historic and natural places.
He stated that it has many well known sites such as Mata Vaishno Devi shrine, Shiv Khori, Salal Dam, Bhimgarh Fort, etc which offers it a huge opportunity to tap its potential by further developing these to bring them on the national tourism map.He also gave many other suggestions to make this District a tourism hub which would create employment opportunities not only for locals but other residents of the UT as well. He called for having a well developed plan to develop tourist circuit(s) inside this district by developing all the relevant amenities and enhancing the connectivity between these places for hassle-free movement of the tourists.
Pertinent to mention here that the bridge over the Chenab River is 1,315 metre long (4,314 feet) and 359 metre high (1,177 feet) from the bed of the river. It will link the Kashmir valley with India’s vast railway network by providing all-weather connectivity to its people. The 119km long (73 miles) railway project comprises of 38 tunnels and 931 bridges having a combined length of 13km (8 miles) to make the railway link possible in this rough terrain nestled in mighty Himalayas.