NEW DELHI: The Railways has modified five Air-conditioned sleeper trains and a Vande Bharat with chair cars for deployment on the Jammu-Kashmir route to cope with the harsh weather conditions, before the start of train operations to the Kashmir Valley from the rest of the country. For the safety of passengers and trains, Railways will have an airport-type security check for passengers boarding these trains.
Sources said preparations are in full swing considering that the Railway Safety Commissioner is scheduled to carry out the final inspection of the Katra-Reasi section of Udhampur-Srinagar-Baramulla railway line on Jan. 5, raising hopes that trains to the Valley will operate commercially starting next month.
Sources said that along with inaugurating a train from the Valley, PM Modi may also inaugurate the Z Morh tunnel in Kashmir, which has already been completed.
Meanwhile, the trial of freight train on the Katra-Reasi section was successfully carried out on Wednesday. Sources said train runs are being conducted to assess the readiness. “We are hopeful that operations will begin this month. With this, rail connectivity between Kashmir and Kanyakumari will be complete,” a source said. The last call at the inauguration will be taken by the prime minister. While it has been speculated that operations could begin from January 26, there are rumors around January 12 as it is the birth anniversary of Swami Vivekananda.
TOI has learned that special arrangements will be made at the platforms from where passengers will board trains to Kashmir. “There will be special security measures for careful control of merchandise, luggage and passengers, something similar to boarding a flight,” an official said.
On the changes made in the trains to adapt to the weather conditions, sources said the heating system will ensure that there is no chance of frost forming on the wheels and brakes.