The Rail Vikas Nigam Limited (RVNL), a public sector enterprise for the railroads in charge of carrying out large projects, has invested Rs 15.16 crore in the purchase of 584 hectares of land in Uttarakhand for compensatory afforestation.

The initiative is expected to result in the planting of roughly six lakh trees as part of the compensatory afforestation, which will shorten the travel time between Rishikesh and Karnprayag.

Despite difficulties, the Indian Railways have bought 951 hectares of land to build a new broad-gauge line in the difficult terrain of the Himalayas with its intricate geology. According to the site engineer, the excavation of muck for the building of 17 tunnels produced 1.5 cubic metres of waste.

The work that is fraught with risks, uncertainties, and technical issues also calls for the protections necessary to reduce risks and challenges during the building and operation phases. All required precautions have been taken to guarantee that the dangers are kept to a minimum.

A committee of renowned international specialists in the field of building railway lines in mountainous terrain had been assembled by RVNL in consideration of the risk concerns.

The expert committee, which comprising renowned tunnel and bridge experts, conducted site visits and provided recommendations, has been taken into consideration while choosing the alignment. The Karnprayag Rail Project will see planting of six million trees. Along with 17 tunnels, the 125 km long Rishikesh-Karnprayag new broad gauge line project would also include 18 significant bridges.

In order to examine takeoff options at Rishikesh and other concerns like land acquisition and forest permissions, RVNL held meetings with state officials. This was done in an effort to reduce potential project implementation obstacles and to get advice from the Uttarakhand government.

The rail project between Rishikesh and Karanprayag is considered crucial to national strategy. A geostrategic project by India to develop infrastructure along the China-India border includes the railway line as well.

The government will be able to quickly send troops to the India-China border in the event of any eventuality. The expansive train project is essential for connecting Chardham in Uttarakhand, where development is progressing quickly.

Once finished, it will pave the way for the state’s economic and social advancement and generate job opportunities.