Katni in Madhya Pradesh to beat Kerala to have India's longest railway bridge

Almost three and a half times longer than Vembanad rail bridge in Kerala, Katni in Madhya Pradesh will have India's longest bridge, according to a leading English daily. The railway bridge will be 14 km on the up line which will be longer that Kerala's Vembanad rail bridge which is 4.62 km long. The Vembanad bridge connects Edappally and Vallarpadam in Kochi.

According to reports, the down line of the bridge would be 7 km and its total length would be 21 km up and down side. 

The design and survey of the bridge is complete and it will take 5 years to complete the construction of the bridge. This project had received approval from the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) along with other railway projects recently. 

The project is expected to cost around Rs 600 crore. 

"Earlier, it was part of the Katni-Singrauli doubling project pegged at Rs 7,000 crore," said Surendra Yadav, Chief public relations officer (CPRO), West Central Railways to the English daily.

"Once complete, it would be the longest rail bridge among the 16 railway zones of the country," he added.

This bridge once complete will benefit both goods and passenger trains that would be equipped with digital signaling and will be maintained online. It would pass above Katni yard and connect with Bina line. 

Reportedly, due to traffic congestion, goods trains are cleared only after 2-4 hours through new Katni junction but once the bridge is complete, these trains can pass through the bridge and head towards Bina directly.