2-lane viaduct at Sherbibi completed: Nitin Gadkari

Ramban: In a significant development, National Highway Authority of India (NHAI) has completed the work on a 224-meter two-lane Sherbibi viaduct on the Ramban-Banihal section of Srinagar Jammu National Highway (NH-44) on Monday.

Two-lane viaduct is part of the four-lane road project.

Officials and engineers of NHAI said that traffic was diverted through this newly constructed viaduct on Monday afternoon.

Earlier, this announcement was made by the Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH) Nitin Gadkari through a post on ‘X’ (previously called Twitter) on Monday.

He said, “In Jammu & Kashmir, we have completed the construction of a 224-meter two-lane viaduct at Sherbibi with an estimated cost of Rs 12 Cr. This infrastructure is situated along the Ramban to Banihal section of NH-44.”

“This 244-meter viaduct, as part of the broader project, not only reduces the travel distance by 125 meters, thus mitigating steep gradients, but also avoids the need for a steep cutting with a hill slope angle exceeding 80 degrees,” Gadkari said.

He pointed out that it would result in smooth flow of traffic, while bypassing the tough area. “Furthermore, it significantly facilitates the smooth flow of vehicles, bypassing the challenging terrain of Sherbibi area gradients,” Gadkari wrote.

Crediting the Prime Minister for this development in J&K, the Union Minister said, “It is important to note that this project contributes to the region’s economic growth and enhances its overall connectivity. Under the visionary leadership of the Honourable Prime Minister, Shri @narendramodi Ji, we remain steadfast in our commitment to delivering exceptional highway infrastructure to the state of Jammu & Kashmir.”

Later, in the day, the Deputy Superintendent of Traffic Police, National Highway Banihal Asgar Malik said that traffic was diverted by the concerned agency NHAI through the newly constructed Sher-bibi viaduct this afternoon.

 “It will help in reducing traffic jams and commuters can travel with ease on the Sher-bibi stretch of Banihal,” he said.

Engineers of NHAI and contractor company CPPPL said the work on an additional two-lane viaduct parallel to this viaduct was also started and it would speed up in coming days as traffic was shifted on the newly constructed Sherbibi viaduct.

It was mentioned earlier also that several road accidents had taken place near Sherbibi bridge on the old alignment of the Highway.

Earlier, in April 2023, during his visit to Ramban, the Union Minister, Nitin Gadkari had inaugurated the 925 meters Peerah-Kunfer T1 road tunnel on the Udhampur–Ramban section.

In June, Gadkari announced the completion of a 1.8 km long 2-lane Ramban viaduct. “This viaduct, built at Rs 140 crore, is situated on the Udhampur–Ramban section of NH-44. Additionally, another 2-lane viaduct, running parallel to this structure, is nearing completion and will be opened soon,” Gadkari had stated.

On October 7, the Union Minister had announced the opening of the two-lane NT-1 Maroog on the Ramban-Banihal section of the four-lane project.

The four-lane project work between Nashri and Banihal is going on in full swing in the Ramban district.