WATCH: Here's how Indian Railways is making Chardham yatra easier

"The proposed Chardham rail line connecting to 2000 m Mean Sea Level (MSL) and above will be an engineering challenging feat," the Ministry said. 

WATCH: Here's how Indian Railways is making Chardham yatra easier
Final Location survey sanctioned at a cost Of Rs 120.92 crore in Budget 2017-18. Photo: IANS
Written By: ZeeBiz WebTeam
Updated: Fri, May 12, 2017
09:52 am
Mumbai, ZeeBiz WebDesk
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In order to give push to Prime Minister Narendra Modi's vision to link Chardham pilgrimage centres via rail connectivity, Indian Railways will begin work on a new railway line. 

Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu will lay the foundation stone for the "Final Location Survey For Single Broad Gauge Line Rail Connectivity" on May 13. 

Final Location Survey sanctioned at a cost Of Rs 120.92 crore in Budget 2017-18.

As per Railway Ministry, Rail Vikas Nigam Limited (RVNL), a Public Sector Enterprise (or PSU) has been entrusted to undertake the Final Location Survey for Chardham and Chardham Yatra (Gangotri, Yamunotri, Badrinath & Kedarnath via Dehradun & Karanprayag) in the State of Uttarakhand. 

Chardham, is one of the unique cornerstones of Hindu pilgrimage which is intertwined to mystical and spiritual aspirations of every devout Hindu.

As the all the four places are located in the rugged mountainous terrain of Himalayas, it will be a major challenge for railways to contruct the tracks along with limits of load, capacity, safety and speed. 

"The proposed Chardham rail line connecting to 2000 m Mean Sea Level (MSL) and above will be an engineering challenging feat," the Ministry said. 

In October 2015, RVNL had undertook a Reconnaissance Engineering Survey (REC) in the year 2014-15 of the rail connectivity project. As per the Reconnaissance Survey the total route length is 327 km at estimated cost of Rs. 43,292 crore. The REC Survey had recommended 21 new stations, 61 tunnels totaling to 279 km tunnel length and 59 bridges.