Gopeshwar: If you are fond of visiting mountains, then there is good news for you. Traveling to mountains is going to be easier soon. Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami on Saturday said after visiting the Rishikesh-Karnprayag rail project site at Karnaprayag-Simai that the work of its first phase will be completed by the end of 2026. A tunnel is being built under the project in Karnaprayag-Simai. 

It is very difficult to make tunnels in the hills

Pushkar Singh Dhami Dhami told reporters in Karnaprayag, "This is a unique project. You can see how difficult it is to make a tunnel in the hills. However, the work is progressing rapidly. The first phase of the project will be completed by the end of 2026." He said that this will prove to be a big milestone in the development of Uttarakhand. Dhami had reached Karnaprayag to garner support for Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) candidates in the urban local body elections to be held on January 23. He said that once the rail project is completed, traveling to the mountains will become easier and tourism will get a boost. 

Chardham Yatra will be easy

Pushkar Singh Dhami said that this will make the journey to Chardham very convenient and will open new opportunities for employment and self-employment. He said that through the gift of Rishikesh-Karnprayag railway line, the Prime Minister has shown his special love for Uttarakhand. The project officials told the Chief Minister that the length of the Rishikesh-Karnprayag rail project is 125 kilometers. 16 tunnels and 12 stations are being built under this section. 

Karnaprayag railway station is being built in Sevai 

Most of the work on the project is targeted to be completed by December 2026. The railway station of Karnaprayag is being built in Sewai. Officials said that the construction of 6.3 km long 'escape tunnel' from Bhattnagar of Gauchar to Sewai was completed on December 25 and the construction of 6. 2 km long main tunnel will be completed by March this year. He said that now only 695 meters of work is left on the main tunnel. Officials associated with the project said that the construction work of road bridge and rail bridge under the project in Sewai is also in progress.