Konkan Railway

The Construction of the KONKAN RAILWAY PROJECT heralds the fulfilment of a long cherished dream of millions of people of the Konkan Region. Its completion, without doubt, ushered a era of rapid social and economic advancement of the entire area. Driving down from picturesque Chiplun towards dusty Karbude, 23 km. South of Ratnagiri town, one would never guess that deep below 107 metres, to be precise there is a train chugging on underground. It is passing through India's longest evertunnel 6.5 km. in length, almost four km. longer than any other tunnel built in the country before.

It is eerie, looking into the inky blackness to the tracks gleaming way down, andyou wonder: "How many workers risked their lives to make this happen?" There were 92 tunnels aggregating to a total length of 83.6 km. and nine tunnels out of these were longer than two km. It was the very first time that such massive tunnelling work was attempted for vehicular tunnels in India. Out of these 9 Tunnels, 4 major tunnels aggregating to 12 kms, was entrusted to us for execution.

Mucking arrangement at “Karbude Shaft”
Torch Bearers In Tunnel

The Construction of the KONKAN RAILWAY PROJECT heralds the fulfilment of a long cherished dream of millions of people of the Konkan Region. Its completion, without doubt, ushered a era of rapid social and economic advancement of the entire area. Driving down from picturesque Chiplun towards dusty Karbude, 23 km. South of Ratnagiri town, one would never guess that deep below 107 metres, to be precise there is a train chugging on underground. It is passing through India's longest evertunnel 6.5 km. in length, almost four km. longer than any other tunnel built in the country before.

It is eerie, looking into the inky blackness to the tracks gleaming way down, andyou wonder: "How many workers risked their lives to make this happen?" There were 92 tunnels aggregating to a total length of 83.6 km. and nine tunnels out of these were longer than two km. It was the very first time that such massive tunnelling work was attempted for vehicular tunnels in India. Out of these 9 Tunnels, 4 major tunnels aggregating to 12 kms, was entrusted to us for execution.

The Construction of the KONKAN RAILWAY PROJECT heralds the fulfilment of a long cherished dream of millions of people of the Konkan Region. Its completion, without doubt, ushered a era of rapid social and economic advancement of the entire area. Driving down from picturesque Chiplun towards dusty Karbude, 23 km. South of Ratnagiri town, one would never guess that deep below 107 metres, to be precise there is a train chugging on underground. It is passing through India's longest evertunnel 6.5 km. in length, almost four km. longer than any other tunnel built in the country before.

It is eerie, looking into the inky blackness to the tracks gleaming way down, andyou wonder: "How many workers risked their lives to make this happen?" There were 92 tunnels aggregating to a total length of 83.6 km. and nine tunnels out of these were longer than two km. It was the very first time that such massive tunnelling work was attempted for vehicular tunnels in India. Out of these 9 Tunnels, 4 major tunnels aggregating to 12 kms, was entrusted to us for execution.

Nathuwadi tunnel Structure
Providing Power Inside Tunnel.

The Construction of the KONKAN RAILWAY PROJECT heralds the fulfilment of a long cherished dream of millions of people of the Konkan Region. Its completion, without doubt, ushered a era of rapid social and economic advancement of the entire area. Driving down from picturesque Chiplun towards dusty Karbude, 23 km. South of Ratnagiri town, one would never guess that deep below 107 metres, to be precise there is a train chugging on underground. It is passing through India's longest evertunnel 6.5 km. in length, almost four km. longer than any other tunnel built in the country before.

It is eerie, looking into the inky blackness to the tracks gleaming way down, andyou wonder: "How many workers risked their lives to make this happen?" There were 92 tunnels aggregating to a total length of 83.6 km. and nine tunnels out of these were longer than two km. It was the very first time that such massive tunnelling work was attempted for vehicular tunnels in India. Out of these 9 Tunnels, 4 major tunnels aggregating to 12 kms, was entrusted to us for execution.

The Construction of the KONKAN RAILWAY PROJECT heralds the fulfilment of a long cherished dream of millions of people of the Konkan Region. Its completion, without doubt, ushered a era of rapid social and economic advancement of the entire area. Driving down from picturesque Chiplun towards dusty Karbude, 23 km. South of Ratnagiri town, one would never guess that deep below 107 metres, to be precise there is a train chugging on underground. It is passing through India's longest evertunnel 6.5 km. in length, almost four km. longer than any other tunnel built in the country before.

It is eerie, looking into the inky blackness to the tracks gleaming way down, andyou wonder: "How many workers risked their lives to make this happen?" There were 92 tunnels aggregating to a total length of 83.6 km. and nine tunnels out of these were longer than two km. It was the very first time that such massive tunnelling work was attempted for vehicular tunnels in India. Out of these 9 Tunnels, 4 major tunnels aggregating to 12 kms, was entrusted to us for execution.

Meeting The challenge Head
Workers being lowered into karbude shaft

Used to excavate around 300,000 m³ of rock. Drivage was from eight faces, two from the portals and six from three vertical shafts up to 170m deep. Using imported drill rigs and Hagglund loaders, the best result for all faces was 425 m/ month. The contract was awarded to Gammon India Ltd but 1,300 m was constructed by B.T. Patil& Sons Belgaum (Construction) Pvt. Ltd through one of the three shafts, and the contractor achieved an average of 100m/month.

It is eerie, looking into the inky blackness to the tracks gleaming way down, andyou wonder: "How many workers risked their lives to make this happen?" There were 92 tunnels aggregating to a total length of 83.6 km. and nine tunnels out of these were longer than two km. It was the very first time that such massive tunnelling work was attempted for vehicular tunnels in India. Out of these 9 Tunnels, 4 major tunnels aggregating to 12 kms, was entrusted to us for execution.