Chakki bridge on Jammu-Delhi line safe for rail operations: Northern Railways

Jammu, Jul 23: Northern Railway on Wednesday stated that the Chakki railway bridge on the Jammu-Delhi line, which recently experienced flash floods, was safe for rail operations.

Though it said, the site was being closely monitored round-the-clock and as per suggestions from IIT Roorkee, the protection work of the bridge was undergoing.

Northern Railway issued this statement after a section of the media reported that on the Jammu-Delhi Railway line in Kangra, a large portion of the bridge foundation washed away in flash floods, yet a big tragedy was averted.

“Chakki railway bridge between Pathankot Cantt- Kandrori stations on the Pathankot-Jalandhar Cantonment route experienced flash floods; water level rose on July 20 and 21, 2025. Northern Railway has already imposed speed caution of 20 km/hour on the bridge since August 1, 2024. There were no chances of any unfortunate incident vis-à-vis rail operations on the said bridge. The bridge is safe for train operations,” Northern Railway Chief Public Relations Officer, Himanshu Shekhar Upadhyay, said.

He stated that the foundation of the bridge reported in the media, which was washed away, was the redundant cladding over the slope.

“This redundant cladding broke and fell into the river on July 21, 2025, due to heavy flow on account of a flash flood. As per the suggestions from IIT Roorkee, protection work of the bridge is underway, and the redundant cladding over the slope was to be dismantled. This redundant cladding did not affect safety in train operations,” Upadhyay said.

He informed that on July 22, 2025, the Chief Bridge Engineer inspected the Chakki railway bridge, which experienced flash floods the previous day.

“The site is being closely monitored round-the-clock by stationary watchmen, supplemented by CCTV cameras installed at the bridge. Work on the pile foundation will resume once a dry spell is experienced and the water level recedes in the river,” Upadhyay said.