Kashmir Impulse Desk

Jammu, April 30

India’s railways have deployed a 21-member onboard security team, including elite commandos, along with a multi-layered protection grid to safeguard Vande Bharat trains operating between Jammu and Srinagar, a senior official said on Thursday.

The 20-coach train service was flagged off by railways minister Ashwini Vaishnaw in the presence of Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah and junior minister Jitendra Singh.

Pankaj Gangwar, principal chief security commissioner of the Railway Protection Force, said regular operations would begin on May 2.

“A comprehensive security grid has been put in place to protect both the railway line and the train,” Gangwar told reporters.

He said the onboard deployment follows a “one plus twenty” model, with one inspector leading a team that includes eight commandos from the RPF’s special unit, known as Commandos for Railway Security (CORAS), equipped with advanced weapons.

A pilot vehicle will run ahead of the train to check the route, while guard posts have been established at intervals of about 2 km along the 327-km Jammu-Katra-Srinagar-Baramulla line, staffed by quick reaction teams from the Government Railway Police and local police, he added.

Tunnel security is being managed through a dedicated control system with sensors to detect fire or intrusion, triggering automatic alerts. 

Both ends of tunnels are guarded, and escape passages have been built to allow evacuation in emergencies, Gangwar said.

The CORAS commandos were first deployed last year to secure Vande Bharat services between Katra and Srinagar.

The rail corridor, built at an estimated cost of about Rs 43780 crore, includes 36 tunnels spanning 119 km and 943 bridges, forming part of the Udhampur-Srinagar-Baramulla rail link that provides all-weather connectivity between Kashmir and the rest of the country.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi had flagged off the first Vande Bharat train on the Katra-Srinagar route in June last year.