Rehabilitation and Strengthening of Bridges over S. E. Railway Jurisdiction

Admin

Kolkata, 5th October 2026: In view of Indian Railways’ objective to increase freight carrying capacity under Mission 3000MT, S. E. Railway has taken up work to upgrade the identified bridges under its jurisdiction. Works for rehabilitation, strengthening and retrofitting as well as rebuilding of bridges have been sanctioned. Approximately ₹4500 crores of bridge works have been sanctioned so far in this regard.

Works undertaken by SER for upgrading the bridges fit for 25T axle loading are as follows:

  • Replacement of existing steel girders of Mega and Major bridges by new steel girders catering to 25T-2008 Loading along with strengthening of bridge substructures and other allied works. There are 41 nos. of bridges sanctioned so far for re-registering works.
  • Replacement of existing steel girders of Mega and Major bridges by new ballasted deck composite girders catering to 25T-2008 Loading along with strengthening of bridge substructures and other ancillary works. There are 38 nos. of bridges sanctioned so far for conversion to composite girders.
  • Replacement of existing steel girders of span up to 12.2m by ballasted deck PSC slabs along with strengthening of bridge substructures, as per Railway Board’s guidelines of Indian Railway Bridge Manual-2024. There are 137 nos. of bridges sanctioned so far for conversion to PSC slabs.
  • Rebuilding of existing Mega and Major bridges as new bridges on diverted alignments. There are 20 nos. bridges identified for rebuilding. Br. No. 57 Down, Mid & Up across the river Rupnarayan on the Howrah-Kharagpur section, the longest Mega bridges of S. E. Railway are among the bridges planned for rebuilding on a diverted alignment.
  • Strengthening/Rehabilitation/Rebuilding of Minor bridges and tunnels. There are approx. 1550 nos. of Minor bridges and 4 nos. tunnels sanctioned so far for rehabilitation.

Bridge Organization of S. E. Railway has also taken up the provision of safety-related items in girder bridges like provision of side pathways and increasing the population of Man Refuges in bridges. Side Pathways have been provided at 199 nos. of bridges so far in S. E. Railway. Work is in progress at 35 nos. of bridges.