Indian Railways has completed India’s longest railway viaduct, the Katni Grade Separator, at a cost of Rs 1,800 crore in Katni, Madhya Pradesh. The up grade separator has recently been commissioned following a successful safety inspection.
The total length of the grade separator spans 33.40 km, comprising a 17.52 km down grade separator currently under construction and a 15.85 km up grade separator that has been commissioned. Officials highlighted that high-quality materials, modern technology, and advanced machinery were employed in the construction.
Railway safety commissioner of central circle (Mumbai), Manoj Arora, recently conducted an intensive inspection of the railway section between Katangi Khurd and New Majhgawan Gate on the newly built up grade separator as part of the Katni Grade Separator Project. GM (WCR) Shobhna Bandopadhyay has been overseeing all aspects of the project under her direct supervision.
The detailed inspection covered multiple technical components, including the housing and tongue rail of the point, bridge layout drawings, girder and bridge observations, bearings, ballast, sleepers, glued joints, trolley house, cushion, improved SEJ, OHE line, chair plate, curb roundness, level crossing, and points-all assessed against railway standard parameters.
During the inspection, a speed trial was successfully conducted at a maximum speed of 120 km/h along the entire section from Katangi Khurd to New Majhgawan Gate. The new up grade separator is set to provide direct and seamless rail connectivity between multiple stations from Bina to New Katni Junction, improving passenger convenience and boosting goods transportation efficiency.
Present at the inspection were chief administrative officer (construction) Hashmi, officials from construction and safety departments, divisional railway manager Kamal Kumar Talreja , senior divisional engineer (coordination), senior divisional safety officer, senior divisional operations manager, senior DEE (TRD) from Jabalpur division, alongside IRCON officials and senior representatives from related departments.