Rail Vikas Nigam Limited (RVNL) has said that work on the strategic Rishikesh-Karnaprayag rail line project is progressing at full pace, with a target to complete the project by December 2028.
RVNL is the implementing agency for the strategically important under-construction 125-km rail corridor in Uttarakhand.
Speaking during the company’s Q3 FY26 earnings conference call earlier this month, RVNL Chairman and Managing Director Saleem Ahmad stated that the Rishikesh-Karnaprayag rail line project is one of the key ongoing railway infrastructure works being executed by the company.
“Another important project is Rishikesh-Karnaprayag, where work is going on full swing, and our target which is to achieve the completion of the project in December 2028. And we are progressing very well in that project also,” Ahmad said during the interaction with investors.
The Rishikesh-Karnaprayag rail line is a major connectivity project in Uttarakhand, aimed at linking the hill regions of Garhwal with the national railway network.
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The 125 km railway project will pass through Dehradun, Tehri Garhwal, Pauri Garhwal, Rudraprayag and Chamoli districts, linking Devprayag and Karnaprayag religious centres with Rishikesh and the National Capital.
Engineering work on the corridor is heavily tunnel-driven due to the Himalayan terrain.
The project includes 16 main tunnels covering 104 km and 12 escape tunnels of about 98 km.
In a written reply to a question in Parliament, Railways Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw had informed that 99 km of main line tunnels and over 94 km of escape tunnels on the route have been completed.
Further, 8 out of 19 major bridges planned along the route have also been finished.
“So far, main line tunnels of 99 km length and 09 escape tunnels of over 94 km length have been completed,” Vaishnaw said in a written reply to a question in the Lok Sabha on 11 February.
To accelerate excavation, authorities identified 8 adits to create additional tunnel work fronts.
All eight adits, covering nearly 5 km, have been completed, helping expedite long tunnel construction, the minister said.
“The project also involves construction of 19 important or major bridges. 8 out of 19 important or major bridges have also been completed. Works in balance bridges have also been taken up,” the minister said.
According to the section-wise update shared by the minister, the Virbhadra-Yog Nagari Rishikesh (4.7 km) stretch is already completed and commissioned.
On the Yog Nagari Rishikesh-Shivpuri (13.4 km) section, 94 per cent excavation of the 10.8 km tunnel has been achieved and the sole major bridge has been completed.
The Shivpuri-Byasi (14.3 km) segment has one tunnel completed, excavation of the second finished with lining underway, and both major bridges constructed.
Similarly, on the Byasi-Devprayag (15 km) stretch, three out of four tunnels are complete, with 69 per cent excavation of the fourth tunnel finished, while all four major bridges have been built.
Tunnel works are fully complete on the Devprayag-Janasu (14.8 km), Janasu-Maletha (4.7 km) and Maletha-Srinagar (5.2 km) sections, while the Janasu-Maletha stretch has also seen its sole major bridge completed.
On the Srinagar-Dhari Devi (11.2 km) section, tunnel excavation is complete and lining is in progress; one of three bridges is finished and work continues on the remaining two.
Excavation and lining on the tunnel are also underway on the Dhari Devi-Tilani (17.6 km) stretch, where construction of a major bridge has been taken up.
The Tilani-Gholtir (7.6 km) segment has achieved 79 per cent tunnel excavation, with work started on both bridges.
Meanwhile, tunnels on the Gholtir-Gauchar (7.8 km) and Gauchar-Karnaprayag (8.4 km) sections have been excavated, lining is ongoing, and construction of three bridges has been initiated on the Gauchar-Karnaprayag stretch.
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