Video of train on high-altitude railway bridge is not from India but from China: Fact Check

A video of a train running on a high-altitude railway bridge has been shared on WhatsApp platform and other social media outlets.

The claim reads:”Congratulations India!!! Successful small train test run was conducted on 21 March on world’s highest railway track under construction on Udhampur-Srinagar-Baramulla rail link on Chenab river in Jammu and Kashmir.”

The video shows a train passing on a high-altitude bridge connecting two mountains. It was also shared on Twitter here.

A trial run over Chenab river! pic.twitter.com/hG5pRKiubR

— Upendra Tripathy (@upendratripathy) March 28, 2023

FACT CHECK:

The WhatsApp sender has asked Digiteye India to check the claim. When we searched on Google Reverse Image search for the highest bridge for a rail track, we found that the bridge was actually the Beipanjiang railway bridge in China and not India. The bridge was opened in 2001 and measures 275 meters in height and 118 kilometers long, connecting Liupanshui and Baigao in Guizhou province of China.

In fact, the video in this claim belongs to a viral video of a train passing through the Beipanjiang bridge and uploaded originally on a Chinese website as per the link. Another website named highestbridges.com shows the same bridge in its video.

In fact, the highest bridge in India and the world is still under construction on the Chenab river in Jammu Kashmir, which was in news on March 26, 2023 when a test run was conducted. It was shared by the Railway Ministry as well.

Chenab bridge, world’s highest rail bridge, is India’s unparalleled engineering feat! 15 stunning facts and images https://t.co/QO6eJA4BYf

— Ministry of Railways (@RailMinIndia) May 13, 2017

This bridge in India at a height of 1,178 feet over the river Chenab is undergoing safety runs and the project will be completed by January 2024. Hence, the video shown in the claim is misleading.

Claim: The video shows a high-altitude railway bridge under construction on Chenab river in Jammu and Kashmir

Conclusion: The video shows Chinese bridge and not India’s under-construction bridge in J&K.

Rating: Misleading —