Reond Khud Bridge
Reond Khud Bridge
This bridge was constructed for the ‘Kangra Valley Railway’ a 2ft 6in/762mm narrow gauge(NG) mountain railway branch of ‘North Western Railway’(NWR), climbing from the Punjab plains up into hills of Mandi State . The Pathankot to Nagrota section, 68 miles(108 km) opened in 1928 and involved several engineering challenges including the Reond Khud Bridge.
It is recorded that [1] :-
“Just beyond Kangra station the line crosses the Reond Khud, having a depth of more than 200 feet(61mtr). The bridge is unique in India , perhaps it is the only steel bridge of its kind. The main span is 180 feet(54.8mtr) of a three pinned steel arch while the end spans are plate girders of 40 foot(12.2mtr)span on either side of the bridge. ‘Braithwaite & Co’ fabricated the girders at their works in Bombay(Mumbai). The 'Rendel, Palmer and Tritton Partnership' finalised the design and drawing work. The main span of the bridge was constructed by projecting cantilever portion on either side of the bridge and then connected in the centre with the central pin. The whole erection work was completed in six weeks and the bridge opened in 1927”
