Central Railway restores Mumbai-Pune rail connectivity after 23-day monsoon repair operation
· Free Press Journal
Central Railway has restored rail connectivity between Mumbai and Pune after completing repair work on all three lines — Up, Down and Mid — on the Karjat-Lonavala ghat section following major landslides triggered by heavy rainfall.
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The final technical hurdle was cleared on July 28, when the Up line between Khandala and Monkey Hill was declared fit for train operations, with services resuming at 18:42 hrs, Central Railway said.
The restoration work was carried out over 23 days under challenging weather conditions, involving more than 11,700 personnel, 40 machines and around 1,40,940 man-hours.
Heavy rainfall of 327 mm on July 5 and 600-670 mm on July 6 triggered multiple landslides, boulder falls and embankment failures across the Lonavala-Karjat section, disrupting train operations. Around 665 trains were affected between July 6 and July 28 due to cancellations, short termination, short origination, diversions and rescheduling.
Central Railway said the Khandala-Monkey Hill stretch on the Up line was among the most severely damaged locations, with a 130-metre-long formation settlement where the embankment sank up to four metres, leaving the track unsupported.
Another major damage site between Monkey Hill and Thakurwadi on the Down line witnessed a landslide from a 200-metre-high hill, causing a retaining wall collapse and a 50-metre washout of the track formation.
At Tunnel No. 51 on the Mid and Up lines, heavy surface runoff flooded the tunnel, washing away ballast and affecting track stability.
The restoration work involved deployment of 2,514 departmental staff and 9,231 contractual workers working round-the-clock. The teams used 18 JCBs, 20 Poclain excavators, including two specialised long-boom machines, along with piling equipment and dumpers.
More than 46,460 cubic metres of Granular Sub-Base (GSB) and 2,600 cubic metres of boulders were used for filling and stabilisation. The railway also installed 8,418 metres of self-drilling anchors, 1,800 square metres of high-strength mesh, 1,700 cubic metres of gabion walls and 7,500 sandbags for slope protection.
Over 110 rakes were deployed to transport material to locations that were inaccessible by road.
The Mid Line was restored on July 7, while the Down Line was made operational on July 14. The Up Line required additional work due to the extent of damage and was restored on July 28.
Central Railway said permanent strengthening measures are underway, including construction of 1,200 mm diameter bored cast-in-situ piles and RCC retaining walls at vulnerable locations to improve long-term resilience of the section.