Anand Mahindra, chairman of Mahindra Group, said the engineer behind the world’s highest railway bridge – Chenab Rail Bridge, Dr G Madhavi Latha, is his Monday Motivation.
Highlighting her other accomplishments, Mahindra said Dr Latha is a professor at the Indian Institute of Science (IISc), Bengaluru.
“An accomplished geotechnical engineer and Professor at the Indian Institute of Science (IISc), Bengaluru, she played a pivotal role in the construction of the Chenab Railway Bridge. A commitment that she fulfilled over 17 years,” he wrote in a tweet.
“Dr. G. Madhavi Latha Garu is my Monday Motivation,” he added.
Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu has also congratulated Dr Latha for her 17 years of dedication and sacrifice in building the bridge.
“Another Telugu daughter has made India proud! I salute Professor G. Madhavi Latha Garu, one of the brilliant minds behind the world’s highest railway bridge over the Chenab River, inaugurated by Hon’ble Prime Minister Narendra Modi Ji on June 6,” he wrote in a tweet.
He added: “Hailing from a small village in Andhra Pradesh, she dedicated 17 years of hard work and sacrifice to build this architectural marvel for the nation.”
Who is Dr G Madhavi Latha?
Dr G Madhavi Latha is a professor of civil engineering at the Indian Institute of Science (IISc), Bengaluru. She worked on the project for 17 years, from 2005, shortly after joining IISc, to 2022.
“Working on this project has been an experience of a lifetime,” Latha recently said in an interview with The Indian Express.
Chenab Rail Bridge: An engineering marvel
Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the Chenab bridge last week. It is the world’s highest railway arch bridge.
The architectural marvel, Chenab Rail Bridge, is 359 metres above the river. It is a 1,315-metre-long steel arch bridge engineered to withstand seismic and wind conditions. The bridge will enhance connectivity between Jammu and Srinagar. It will officially connect the Kashmir Valley with the rest of India via rail for the first time in history.
The Vande Bharat Express train moving on the bridge takes about three hours to travel between Katra and Srinagar, reducing the existing travel time by two to three hours.
PM Modi on Friday flagged off two Vande Bharat Express trains from Katra Railway Station, directly connecting the Jammu division with Kashmir.
This marks a major milestone in Jammu and Kashmir’s railway connectivity.
The Prime Minister also inaugurated the Anji Khad Bridge, India’s first cable-stayed railway bridge. He also dedicated the Udhampur-Srinagar-Baramulla Rail Link (USBRL) project to the nation. The 272-km-long USBRL project, which includes 36 tunnels (spanning 119 km) and 943 bridges, was constructed with an estimated ₹43,780 crore.