Arun Jasrotia
Udhampur/Chenani,DD :- A much-needed infrastructure development has been completed on National Highway-244, which is good news for pilgrims and tourists planning to visit religious sites like Sudhmahadev, Gourikund, and Mantalai, as well as scenic locations like Basantgarh. The much-awaited bridge in the Chenani-Sudhmahadev section has been opened for traffic, marking a major milestone in regional connectivity.
Standing 45 meters high and stretching 219.4 meters in length, the Bridge No. 2 has not only decreased the travel time but also ensured the safer and easier travel of commuters. The bypass of Chenani town by this bridge has itself turned once-hard routes into a passage of development and promises major socio-economic and tourism development to the region.
The strategic bypass design avoids all vehicles from passing through Chenani town, thus circumventing the traffic congestion that had caused so much anxiety to travelers. A distance of around three kilometers would be saved along the journey with this new route, thus shaving off a long time from travel. What will take between one to one-and-a-half hours during traffic jams now becomes a very swift and smooth passage.
SRM Contractors began the construction of the bridge in 2021. The six-span bridge includes two box girders (steel) and four PSC I-girders (concrete). It was an engineering challenge to construct the bridge at a height of 45 meters, but the National Highways Infrastructure Development Corporation Limited successfully managed to overcome the challenge.
The Chenani-Sudhmahadev road project is now at its final phase, where widening work on the roads is under way at different points. This development will particularly enhance religious tourism, thereby fast-tracking the progress of developments in places such as Sudhmahadev and Mantalai. Immediate and direct beneficiaries will be local communities as people going from Chenani to Sudhmahadev will no longer have to travel a long, harsh, and tiring distance.
The project has already created large local employment opportunities as many locals and drivers got employed during the construction process. Especially, with the completion of the bridge, the tourists to the religious places Sudhmahadev, Mantalai, and Gourikund would be saved from the previous traffic jam of two hours at Chenani.
This bridge construction is part of the central government’s broader initiative to enhance road connectivity in Jammu and Kashmir. NHIDCL has successfully completed other significant projects in the region, such as the Sonamarg Tunnel and Khilani Tunnel in Doda. Local residents have thanked Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Dr. Jitendra Singh, and Road Transport Minister Nitin Gadkari for their efforts in developing the region’s infrastructure network.The completion of this bridge marks a significant step forward in the region’s development, benefiting not only tourists but also the local population through improved connectivity and economic opportunities.DD
Correspondent, Udhampur