Maruti Suzuki has become the first automaker to transport vehicles directly to the Kashmir Valley by rail. On Friday, a special automobile freight train successfully delivered a consignment of 116 newly manufactured cars from the company’s Manesar plant in Haryana to the Anantnag Goods Shed in south Kashmir.
The train, dispatched from Maruti Suzuki’s newly inaugurated in-plant Gati Shakti Terminal (GCT) at Manesar, traversed the picturesque terrain via the Udhampur-Srinagar-Baramulla Rail Link (USBRL) project. En route, it crossed the iconic Chenab Rail Bridge—the world’s highest railway arch bridge, standing at 359 meters above the riverbed and inaugurated earlier this year as a crown jewel of India’s infrastructure push.
With the dispatch of the first lot of vehicles to Kashmir Valley via train, the company became the first automobile manufacturer in India to utilise Indian Railways services for dispatching vehicles to the region, a Maruti Suzuki India spokesperson said. Before the launch of direct train connectivity, new cars destined for Kashmir’s showrooms had to endure a gruelling road journey from Jammu, often driven hundreds of kilometres by hired drivers. This not only racked up unnecessary mileage—sometimes up to 275-300 km—but also left vehicles dusty, scratched, and far from factory-fresh upon delivery, disappointing eager buyers who missed the thrill of being the first to take the wheel. The fleet included popular models like the compact Brezza SUV, efficient Dzire sedan, versatile WagonR, and budget-friendly S-Presso, catering to Kashmir’s diverse buyer preferences amid rising demand for fuel-efficient and rugged vehicles suited to the Valley’s winding roads.
Northern Railway hailed the dispatch as a “significant step in linking Kashmir more closely with the country’s automobile and freight networks,” promising faster, safer, and more eco-friendly transport options. Union Minister for Railways Ashwini Vaishnaw celebrated the milestone on social media, drawing parallels to recent rail exports of Kashmir’s famed apples: “In recent times, apples from the valley have been transported using the Jammu & Kashmir rail link. Now, Maruti Suzuki cars will be transported to the Kashmir valley by rail. Rail transport is central to our economy and lives.” Hisashi Takeuchi, Managing Director and CEO of Maruti Suzuki India, said railway dispatches were central to their logistics strategy. “The world’s highest railway arch bridge in Chenab is one, a Landmark, enabling seamless and efficient connectivity to the Kashmir valley and allowing Maruti Suzuki to better serve customers in the region,” he said. Takeuchi said aligned with the PM GatiShakti National Master Plan, Maruti Suzuki operates two in-plant railway sidings, inside its Manesar, Haryana and Gujarat manufacturing plants. These enable vehicle movement directly from the company’s facilities to different parts of the country, he added. Hailing the move, the local Maruti dealerships said the step will ease the transportation of vehicles from manufacturing plants to the Valley.
“The condition of the road is not good here, so the train (railway dispatches) is a good thing. The cars used to be driven from Jammu to Kashmir along the highway, but that can be avoided now,” said Irfan Ahmad Narwaroo, Managing Director of Jamkash Vehicleades Pvt Ltd, the largest Maruti dealership in the Valley. Narwaroo said the move will benefit customers.
