Railway Minister shares INCREDIBLE video of India's FIRST vertical lift bridge: Watch

The video shared by Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw shows the functioning of the Pamban bridge, with the bridge lifting up to give way to a boat after a train passes through it.

Image Source- Twitter

Indian Railways is working on improving the railway network across the nation. As a part of this endeavour, the railways recently completed the work on the highest railway in Kashmir. Now, to make similar improvements in Southern India, railways is working on India's first vertical lift bridge, i.e., the Pamban bridge. The bridge, once functioning, will connect Rameswaram and Dhanushkodi rail links in Tamil Nadu. Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw has been sharing updates on the ongoing construction work and has completed more than 80 percent of the work. In a very recent update, the minister shared a video showing the functioning of the bridge in an animated video.

The 26-second video shows the movement of the vertical lift bridge and how it will give passage to the boats in the water. Once complete, the Pamban bridge will improve connectivity by facilitating the trains to carry more weight, increasing the speed and volume of traffic on the route. Moreover, the height will benefit water transportation by not obstructing the movement of boats.

The construction work of the Pamban Railway Bridge is in full-swing, and the work is expected to be completed next year. However, the Indian Railways has not provided a specific timeline for the construction of the bridge.

Heritage meets technology.#PambanBridge connecting Rameswaram. pic.twitter.com/nN0evsefUV — Ashwini Vaishnaw (@AshwiniVaishnaw) December 28, 2022

The project's estimated cost was Rs 279.6 crore, but it ended up costing around Rs 540 crore. The bridge's construction began in  February 2020 and is ongoing around the clock from the Rameshwaram end.

The 72 m-long Vertical lift span is one of the new Pamban Bridge's unique characteristics. This enables the span to be raised 17 metres to accommodate ships. For a double track, the vertical lift span will be constructed. The bridge will traverse the water on 100 separate occasions, with 99 spans of 18.3 metres and one span of 72.5 metres. Additionally, it will be 3 m higher than the current bridge.