10.847-km Escape Tunnel-1 fully connected in Rishikesh-Karnprayag rail project

The Rishikesh-Karnprayag new broad gauge rail line project has achieved a significant milestone with the final breakthrough of Escape Tunnel-1, marking the 41^st tunnel breakthrough of the prestigious Himalayan railway project.

With this breakthrough, Escape Tunnel-1 has been connected along its entire length of 10.847 km. It is the second-longest tunnel in the project, officials said.

This marks a landmark achievement in the Rishikesh-Karnprayag New Broad Gauge Rail Line Project of the Rail Vikas Nigam Limited (RVNL), officials said.

According to officials, the achievement assumes significance given the challenging geological conditions encountered during construction. The entire stretch passes through highly tectonised, multi-folded and extensively faulted rock formations, with widespread shearing and locally intense crushing.

These adverse geological conditions also resulted in the formation of thick mylonite zones, primarily associated with the tunnel’s proximity to the Main Boundary Thrust (MBT).

With 41 tunnel breakthroughs now completed, the project is steadily progressing towards its completion. The remaining five breakthroughs are expected to be achieved within the next year, bringing the ambitious railway project closer to its objective of extending rail connectivity into the Himalayan region of Uttarakhand.

According to government, the 125-km Rishikesh-Karnprayag new broad gauge rail line project was sanctioned to provide improved rail connectivity to Uttarakhand. The alignment passes through Dehradun, Tehri Garhwal, Pauri Garhwal, Rudraprayag and Chamoli districts and will connect important religious and tourist destinations, including Devprayag and Karnprayag, with Rishikesh and the National Capital Region.

Given the difficult Himalayan terrain, the alignment predominantly runs through tunnels. The project involves the construction of 16 main-line tunnels with a combined length of 104 km and 12 escape tunnels covering around 98 km. So far, approximately 101 km of main-line tunnels and more than 95 km of escape tunnels have been completed.

To accelerate the pace of tunnelling, eight adits were identified at various locations. These adits provided additional work faces for tunnel excavation, enabling construction activities to be carried out simultaneously from multiple points and helping expedite the completion of long tunnels. All eight adits, covering a total length of approximately 5 km, have now been completed.

The project also includes the construction of 19 important and major bridges, of which 11 have been completed. Work on the remaining bridges is also progressing.

During the last three years -- 2023-24, 2024-25, 2025-26 and the current financial year i.e 2026-27, eight surveys (three new lines and five doubling) falling fully or partly in Uttarakhand having a total length of 446 km have been sanctioned.

The latest breakthrough represents another significant engineering achievement in one of India’s most challenging railway infrastructure projects. With the majority of the tunnelling work already completed and the remaining breakthroughs progressing, the Rishikesh-Karnprayag rail project is steadily moving towards its larger goal of providing faster, more efficient and reliable rail connectivity to the Himalayan districts of Uttarakhand.