UT-Ludhiana rail link to open from April 19

The timings of the train will also be changed.

Nearly 15 years after it was proposed,the much awaited Chandigarh-Ludhiana rail link will finally be opened with the Chandigarh-Amritsar Superfast Express Train to become the first passenger train to ply the track. From April 19 onwards,the train between Chandigarh and Amritsar will be shifted onto the new route.

The timings of the train will also be changed. The train will now depart from Chandigarh at 5.30 pm,reach Ludhiana at 7.05 pm and then Amritsar at 9.10 pm. It will also have a brief stop in Jalandhar and Mohali. The stoppage at Sirhind has been discontinued.

Meanwhile,the train will start from Amritsar at 5.20 am,reach Ludhiana at 7.15 am and arrive in Chandigarh at 9.05 am. The train journey will also be quicker by 40 minutes.

Proposed in 1997-98,the construction of the 112 kilometres Chandigarh-Ludhiana link was completed in three phases. The first phase-I,from Chandigarh to Morinda stations,opened in September 2006. Phase-II from Sahnewal to Ludhiana was opened for traffic in November 2012.

However,the stretch between New Morinda and Sahnewal faced several road blocks due to which trains plyed through Morinda-Sirhind,adding 40 minutes to the journey time.

The project was expedited once local MP Pawan Kumar Bansal took over as the Railways Minister,who had assured that the track would be opened around March 31.

Trials on the track started in February. The last hurdle was clearance by the Commission for Railway Safety,who conducted inspection from April 13 to 15.

Stay updated with the latest - Click here to follow us on Instagram