On board the first Jammu–Srinagar Vande Bharat: Tunnels, bridges, magnificent Himalayas and a trip down memory lane

On 17 April, the New Delhi–Jammu Rajdhani Express rolls into platform number 1 of Jammu Tawi railway station at 4:50 AM, right on schedule. After an overnight journey aboard one of Indian Railways’ premier trains, we stepped onto the platform about half an hour before the first light of dawn began to break over Jammu, the summer capital of Jammu and Kashmir.

A blue signboard hanging above a nearby staircase points towards platform number 6/7 — the departure point for the Jammu-Srinagar Vande Bharat train, the first direct railway link between Jammu and Srinagar, launched two weeks ago.

Porters hurry past with luggage carts, tea vendors call out for customers, and small groups of travellers clutching tickets and smartphones move briskly in one direction. For many, like me, my wife Mehnaz and kids, Ibrahim and Mirha, this was more than just a train transfer. It meant the beginning of a historic rail journey from Delhi to Srinagar, our hometown nestled in the Himalayas.

For me, it was the first-ever train journey from Delhi to Srinagar since 2004, when my father sent me to Aligarh for studies. On occasions when I would decide to avoid expensive air travel to home, I would take a train to Jammu, followed by a road trip in taxis, mostly a Tata Sumo during my good old college days.

Not any more, unless I choose one, just for the sake of it.

On 30 April this year, Union Minister for Railways Ashwini Vaishnaw flagged off the first-ever direct train service between Jammu and Srinagar. The Minister described it as “India’s first experience with railway operations at such high altitudes” and “a game-changer for the region’s economy”.

The Jammu Rajdhani arrives at Jammu at 5 AM. And Srinagar Vande Bharat leaves at 6.20 AM. Another Vande Bharat leaves for Srinagar from Jammu in the afternoon.

We had already booked Rajdhani tickets from Delhi to Jammu. We added the Vande Bharat train to complete the journey once the booking was opened late on 30 April. An agent helped me to get the tickets.

Back at the Jammu railway station, after crossing a security checkpoint on the foot overbridge, we arrive at platform number 7, where the train — gleaming in its fresh saffron-tinged look — is already waiting for departure.

The train departed promptly at 6:20 AM. The coach was less crowded from the originating station. Ibrahim and Mirha chose to stay glued to the window. Water and newspapers were provided, followed by ordinary tea bags and a biscuit for the passengers who had boarded.

The train made its first halt at Udhampur before moving ahead to Katra, Reasi, Banihal, and finally Srinagar. A few passengers boarded at Udhampur, but by the time the train pulled out of Katra, the coach was almost full with families, tourists and locals settling into their seats for the scenic ride ahead.

Most of the journey unfolds through the mountains. The train disappears into one tunnel after another — more than 36 in all — before emerging briefly onto bridges suspended above deep valleys and rushing rivers on its way to Srinagar.

Before the train chugged in at the temple town of Katra, Ibrahim, Mirha, and other kids on our coach remained restless with excitement, hopping from one seat to another in search of the perfect window view. The best view, however, was for later.

A few minutes before the train reaches the iconic Anji Khad Bridge — India’s first cable-stayed railway bridge — passengers begin pulling out their phones, ready to capture the moment in Reasi district of Jammu.

But the train is fast — too fast at times for the phone camera eye to fully absorb the landscape outside. Before one photograph is taken, another tunnel swallows the view whole.

Once again, phones appear in every hand. Passengers try their best to catch the perfect frame before the train speeds past. Yet for most travellers aboard the Vande Bharat train, the grandeur of the Chenab Bridge remains difficult to fully grasp from inside the coach.

From our windows, we see mostly sweeping valleys, rugged mountains and, far below, a narrow ribbon of the Chenab river cutting through the gorge.

By now, breakfast is served. Plates of poha, cutlets and muffins on our tables. Ibrahim and Mirha turn their attention to the trays, visibly excited and amused by the muffins. The food was good enough to make us momentarily forget the disappointing dinner served the previous night aboard the 1AC coach of the New Delhi–Jammu Rajdhani Express, one of the most expensive train journeys.

The next halt is Banihal, long known as the gateway to Kashmir because of the historic Jawahar Tunnel, cutting across the Pir Panjal mountains and linking Kashmir with the rest of India through the Srinagar-Jammu highway.

Beyond Banihal, the landscape begins to soften. The train gathers speed as it glides past dense pine forests, pristine meadows and vast stretches of pastures of Kashmir. In the distance, snow-capped peaks rise above the Valley like a painted backdrop.

At around 11.15 AM scheduled time on 17 May, the Vande Bharat Express reached Srinagar railway station in Nowgam, a 20-minute drive from our home.

For all the comfort and spectacle during the five-hour train journey, there was still something I found myself missing — the flavours of the old Jammu–Srinagar National Highway.

The train may have shortened distances and erased the uncertainty of road travel, but it cannot recreate the small rituals that once defined the journey to Kashmir: the steaming noon chai at Banihal, the hearty rajma chawal at Peerah, or the sweet, flaky patisa from Kud.

The extension of the Vande Bharat to Jammu Tawi is the latest milestone in a decade-long effort to transform railway connectivity in the erstwhile state. The Kashmir Valley saw its first electric train in February 2024.

From Srinagar railway station, we hired an auto, and he dropped us off at home.