Katra-Banihal Speed Limit Raised to 100 kmph: Vande Bharat Crosses Chenab and Anji Bridges
The maximum permitted speed on the 111-km Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Katra to Banihal section in Jammu and Kashmir has been raised to 100 kmph. The higher speed was successfully tested on 1 October 2026.
Earlier, trains could run at up to 85 kmph between Katra and Sangaldan and 75 kmph between Sangaldan and Banihal.
During the test, the Vande Bharat Express (Train No. 26401/26404) crossed both the Chenab Bridge (the world's highest railway bridge) and the Anji Khad Bridge (India's first cable-stayed railway bridge) at 100 kmph, a new record on this line.
The Railway Ministry approved the higher speed after the railways met all prescribed safety conditions in August 2026.
The section is part of the Udhampur-Srinagar-Baramulla Rail Link (USBRL), under the Jammu division of Northern Railway. The higher speed is expected to cut travel time between Katra and Banihal.
Udhampur-Srinagar-Baramulla Rail Link (USBRL)
The Udhampur-Srinagar-Baramulla Rail Link (USBRL) is a 272-km railway line that connects the Kashmir Valley to the rest of India's rail network. Before it was completed, a person in Srinagar could travel by train only within the Valley; to reach Jammu or Delhi, they had to go by road over the mountains. The USBRL, built at a cost of about ₹43,780 crore, made all-weather rail travel between Kashmir and the rest of the country possible. It was fully opened on 6 June 2025.
The speed on the 111-km Katra-Banihal section, the hardest part of the USBRL, has been raised to 100 kmph after safety checks. This lets trains like the Vande Bharat run faster across Chenab and Anji bridges and shortens the journey between Jammu region and the Kashmir Valley.
Types of Bridges: Arch, Cable-Stayed, Suspension and Beam
A bridge carries a road or railway across a river, valley or sea. Every bridge must safely carry its own weight plus the weight of vehicles, wind and earthquakes, and pass this load down into the ground. Engineers do this in different ways, which gives us different types of bridges: beam, truss, arch, cantilever, suspension and cable-stayed. Each type suits a certain distance, ground condition and cost.
The Vande Bharat crossed two very different bridge types at 100 kmph: the Chenab Bridge, a steel arch, and the Anji Khad Bridge, a cable-stayed design. Both were chosen because their deep gorges made it hard to place many pillars, and both show how bridge type is matched to terrain.
- Katra-Banihal section: 111 km; new maximum speed 100 kmph (earlier 85 kmph Katra-Sangaldan, 75 kmph Sangaldan-Banihal)
- Speed tested on 1 October 2026; approval followed safety compliance in August 2026
- Vande Bharat Train No. 26401/26404 crossed Chenab and Anji bridges at 100 kmph
- Katra-Srinagar Vande Bharat flagged off on 6 June 2025
- USBRL: 272 km, about ₹43,780 crore, 36 tunnels, 943 bridges
- Chenab Bridge: 359 m high; Anji Khad: India's first cable-stayed rail bridge