Jammu-Udhampur rail link to be completed by Mar 2004

The long-pending rail link between Jammu-Udhampur is targeted for completion by March, 2004, Railway Minister Nitish Kumar said on Wednesday.

Presenting the Rail Budget for 2003-04, Kumar also said the link upto Katra is likely to be completed during 2004-05.

The work on Udhampur-Katra and Quazigund-Baramulla sections is already in progress, he said, adding the stretch between Katra-Quazigund is very difficult requiring large-scale tunneling and bridging works for which detailed surveys on ground need to be carried out.

Kumar recalled that Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee [ Images ] during his visit to Srinagar [ Images ] had annonced that the first train will roll into the Kashmir [ Images ] Valley by August 15, 2007.

PTI