Reaching a milestone for connectivity and national security, Indian Railways on Wednesday conducted the first “trial special train” carrying soldiers on the strategic Katra-Qazigund stretch — a key segment of the long-pending rail link that will integrate the Kashmir Valley with the rest of the country.

For the first time, a train carrying passengers — soldiers stranded due to flight cancellations — moved across the Chenab Bridge, the highest railway arch in the world and a critical piece of the railway network in Jammu and Kashmir.

The train left Katra at 10 am and returned by 6 pm, with full security arrangements in place.

“The train operation was limited to only the Katra-Qazigund section. Normal train operation is on between Qazigund and Baramulla,” said an official.

The timing of the trial run comes in the middle of the India-Pakistan conflict and Operation Sindoor, sending a clear message that India’s infrastructure push in the region will not be held hostage to cross-border hostilities.

The train operation was unaffected by the ongoing conflict.

The Kashmir Valley has relied heavily on the Srinagar-Jammu highway for connectivity, a route often disrupted by landslides and snow. The new rail line changes that as it ensures faster movement of troops, equipment, and civilians through a terrain which was inaccessible earlier.

Earlier trial runs on this stretch involved Vande Bharat trains, but they carried no passengers.

Three days before the Pahalgam terror attack on April 22, Prime Minister Narendra Modi was slated to inaugurate the section last month, but the event was postponed due to bad weather.