Pathankot-Jogindernagar train service suspended due to rains

Ravinder Sood

Palampur, July 7

The Railways has suspended the train service on the Pathankot-Jogindernagar section following heavy rain during the monsoon season in the Kangra valley.

The train service had been operating between Nurpur and Baijnath for the past six months. Thousands of passengers in Kangra district will miss the economical railway transport service on the narrow gauge line due to the indefinite suspension of the train service.

After the collapse of the Chakki river railway bridge in August 2022, the train service was operational only between Nurpur and Paprola. The track was washed away at many places during last year’s flashfloods. There was no train facility for a year between Palampur and Nurpur. Later, the Railways introduced two trains between Nurpur and Paprola, which stand suspended again now. The Kangra valley rail is considered as a lifeline for hundreds of passengers, who use the service in routine.

Before the collapse of the Chakki bridge in August 2022, seven trains were running on the route daily, covering 33 stations and passing through Nurpur, Jawali, Jwalamukhi Road, Kangra, Nagrota Bagwan, Chamunda, Palampur, Baijnath and Jogindernagar, some of which are major tourist centres of the state.

The railway line in Kangra plays a significant role in the economy of the region. The British had laid the line in the valley in 1932, linking all important and religious towns of Kangra and some parts of Mandi.

Illegal mining near the Chakki bridge for the past over three decades had weakened the supporting pillars and protection wall. The Railways had spent lakhs of rupees on the repair work in the past one decade, but the structures were damaged again. A new bridge is under construction, which is likely to be ready before 2025.