Rishikesh-Karnaprayag Railway

The Rishikesh-Karnaprayag Railway is the first phase of the broader Char Dham Railway project — a 125 km broad-gauge electrified line connecting the existing Rishikesh terminus (well-served by Indian Railways from Delhi) to Karnaprayag in the Garhwal Himalayas, providing the first rail access toward the Char Dham pilgrimage sites.

Sanctioned by the Modi government in 2014 as part of the broader Char Dham mission, construction began in 2017 with target completion 2025. The line is being executed by Indian Railways' Northern Railway zone with IRCON as lead contractor and L&T sharing major packages. Total project cost: ₹16,000 crore.

Key engineering features: ~85% of the alignment (105 km of 125 km total) is in tunnel — including 17 tunnels longer than 1 km each, with the longest being the Devprayag-Janasu tunnel at 14.57 km (which would be among India's longest railway tunnels when complete). The remaining 20 km is on bridges + short surface sections.

The alignment runs parallel to the Char Dham Highway through the Garhwal region's challenging Himalayan terrain. Design accounts for Zone IV-V seismic exposure, active landslide zones, and heavy monsoon water-ingress in tunnels. Real-time slope-monitoring sensors + structural health monitoring are integrated into all major bridge structures.

When operational (2025 target), the line will provide a 4-hour direct rail journey from Delhi to Karnaprayag (vs current 14+ hours by road), dramatically transforming both pilgrim tourism + strategic military supply to the upper Garhwal region. The line will eventually be extended onward to Joshimath as Phase 2 of the Char Dham Railway.