Train Timing

8220;Right from the hotel business to hundreds of taxi operators and other small businessmen, this train will give new boost to the economy of this area where most of the people depend on tourists to earn their bread and butter,8221; says Cabinet Minister Jugal Kishore Sharma who is also MLA of Reasi-Katra constituency. The 25-km Udhampur-Katra stretch is the first phase of the 287-km Udhampur-Qazigund-Baramulla rail line. The ambitious project of the Northern Railways was cleared by the Cabinet committee in 1994-95; work began in 2004.

The line was to be made operational in 2005 but work was delayed due to waterlogging in a few tunnels which hampered blasting work and endangered the lives of the engineers and labourers. The project, estimated at Rs 540 crore, later jumped a July 2006 deadline and is now slated for March this year. 8220;There is still some waterlogging problem in one tunnel. It may little delay the target of March 2007 but not by more than one or two months,8221; said Rajiv Saxena, chief public relations officer of the Northern railways.

There is another problem too. In nearby Sial Jattan, Mand and 25-odd other villages, the construction of tunnels has drained the water. 8220;Our cattle face the biggest difficulty and many of us have had to sell them since we can8217;t arrange water,8221; says Krishan Chand, president of Sial Jattan Village Development Committee. 8220;Though water tankers have been arranged at a few places, overall it has caused serious problem to our people. I will also raise this issue in the coming session of the Assembly,8221; Udhampur MLA Balwant Singh Mankotia said.

Elsewhere, the mood is upbeat. 8220;Hamare gaon se train niklegee to hamein bhee pata chalega ki hamare desh ne kitni tarakki kar lee hai Once the train runs, we will also get to know how much progress the country has made,8217;8217; said Om Prakash, sarpanch of Jhakar village. So far, the Katra railway station has got three platforms.

The track has been divided into five portions, under the charge of three dozen junior engineers and four deputy chief engineers. 8220;Work on the Katra yard will be completed in the first month of 2007. Track linking work is also on and we are working hard to complete it before March 2007,8221; said PC Sharma, deputy chief engineer for the Udhampur-Katra line.

It is an uphill task though. Cutting through rocky terrain, 40 per cent of the line runs through tunnels and bridges. Sharma puts the number at seven tunnels and 27 bridges, small and big, along the 25-km track.

The off-shoot, the people of Katra hope, will be tourists taking the train for the sheer scenery. Hotel industry is the chief source of livelihood here, with more than 60 lakh pilgrims visiting every year. At present, there are about 195 hotels and guest houses in this town, the base camp of the Vaishno Devi Shrine.