Good news: You can soon travel by rail to Vaishno Devi

Railway Minister Mallikarjun Kharge today said train service to Katra, the base camp of Mata Vaishno Devi temple in Jammu and Kashmir, will begin shortly. “Passenger services up to Katra are expected to run very shortly,” Khagre said, while announcing the interim rail budget. [caption id=“attachment_1385893” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  Reuters[/caption] The construction on the  Udhampur – Katra section, which will enable lakhs of pilgrims from all over the country to reach the foothills of Vaishno Devi shrine directly, has been completed and trial runs have already started. " The National Project of Kashmir witnessed a major landmark last June, when a 11.2 km long tunnel linking Banihal with Qazigund in the valley became operational. The tunnel, which is an engineering marvel, has reduced the distance from 35 km to 17.5 km, providing an all-season means of transport for the local population and is proving a boon for the inhabitants," said Kharge.