THE RAMBAN BRIDGE OVER RIVER CHENAB

                                         

PANDIT JAWAHAR LAL NEHRU ACCOMPANIED BY INDIRA GANDHI AND HER FAMILY   ON WAY TO SRINAGAR  CROSSING RAMBAN BRIDGE ON FOOT  IN MAY 1948.

When Maharaja Gulab Singh took over the reins of the J&K state, he decided to develop Udhampur , Ramban and Banihal route to travel to Kashmir. This road came to be known as Banihal  Cart Road or B.C.Road. At Ramban, a  small wooden bridge was built over river Chenab for movement of men and material.Later ,  a suspension bridge was built  over river Chenab . For many many years , this suspension bridge was the only link to Kashmir valley  for movement of men ,material and motor vehicles.  Passengers had to get down and cross the bridge on foot. Thereafter, the  vehicle would slowly cross the bridge . The  passengers then boarded the vehicle across the bridge.This  suspension bridge was completed during the rule of Maharaja Partap Singh who sat in the first vehicle that passed over this bridge on 2nd May 1921 .This was annual Darbaar move from Jammu to Srinagar.The RCC bridge that is in use currently was built much later in late sixties of the last century.And in 2004 , the old suspension bridge was declared unsafe for vehicular traffic. A  motorable bridge was built over river Jhelum at Sangam near Bijbihara town by Maharaja Partap Singh in 1910. Before that , passengers would generally use Doongas or river link to travel  from Khannabal to  Srinagar .The Dogra rulers built another bridge at Lakhanpur over River Ravi linking the State of Jammu And Kashmir with Punjab. The Dogra rulers also built Kohala bridge linking what is now POK with Srinagar . 

RAMBAN BRIDGE  IN THE  DOGRA  FOLKLORE..

                                         

The bridge uplifted the status of Ramban which at the moment is a district from a mere 15 households. The bridge brought unimaginable happiness and development in the area and the subsequent Dogra rulers used this route to go to the Kashmir valley. The construction of the bridge entered Dogra folklore. 

Ramban  pul baneya

Baneya vaaj garariya

Teri meri preet lagiye, 

lagiye vaaj rawariya

........Dhaare tudaan peiyaan

          kandiyaan peiyaan barsaala

( Avtar Mota )

PS

"Dhaare tudaan peiyaan

Kandian peyiyaan barsaala..."

(The mountain tops had a snowfall 

and the Kandi area had rains)

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