Aravalli Breakthrough: The 2026 ‘Great Wall’ of Haryana Rail

Townhall Times, New Delhi

Reporter: Bhavika Kalra

By: Infrastructure Desk | New Delhi Tuesday, February 24, 2026

The Haryana Rail Infrastructure Development Corporation (HRIDC) just confirmed that on February 23, 2026, they successfully achieved the first tunnel breakthrough for the 126-km Haryana Orbital Rail Corridor (HORC).

Here is the raw, ground-level breakdown of what actually happened in the hills of Sohna and what it means for your commute.

1. The ‘Breakthrough’ Moment

Imagine two teams of engineers digging from opposite sides of a mountain for months and finally meeting in the middle with millimeter precision.

The Location: This happened at Tunnel-1, a critical section between face 5 and face 7 of the twin-tunnels in the Aravalli range.
The Scale: This isn’t just a small hole. We’re talking about a 4.7 km twin-tunnel with a massive 9-meter height—large enough to run Double Stack Container trains at 100 kmph. It is one of the largest rail tunnels in this kind of soil strata in India.
The Pace: While this breakthrough is a win, the full tunneling work for both tubes is currently slated for completion by December 2027.

2. The Strategic ‘Orbit’

The HORC isn’t a straight line; it’s a giant horseshoe that hugs the Western Peripheral Expressway (WPE).

The Route: It starts at Palwal, swings through Sohna, Manesar, and Kharkhoda, and plugs into the main line at Sonipat.
The Purpose: Right now, every freight train carrying cars from Manesar or coal to Sonipat has to crawl through the congested heart of Delhi. The HORC will let them bypass the city entirely, freeing up tracks for faster passenger trains inside Delhi.

3. Who Wins? (2026 Reality Check)

Maruti Suzuki & Logistics: The Manesar-Patli section is already operational as of late 2025. Over 370 rakes of cars have already been shipped directly from the factory, saving thousands of truck trips on the highway.
Gurugram Commuters: Once the full corridor is done, a “Shatabdi-style” train could potentially run from Gurugram to Chandigarh, bypassing the Delhi traffic nightmare.
Economic Zones: This is the backbone of the Delhi-Mumbai Industrial Corridor (DMIC). If you’re looking at real estate in Sohna or Kharkhoda, this tunnel is the reason prices are moving.

HORC Milestone Tracker: February 2026

Component	Current Status	Expected Completion
Tunnel-1 Breakthrough	ACHIEVED (Feb 23, 2026)	Part of the 4.7 km twin tunnel.
Manesar-Patli Section	OPERATIONAL	Active since June 2025.
Full Tunneling Work	Under Construction (10 faces)	December 2027.
Palwal-Sonipat Full Line	Civil Works in Progress	March 2028 (Estimated).

The Bottom Line

The Aravalli hills are notoriously difficult to tunnel through because of their geological age and unstable soil. The fact that RVNL (the contractor) hit this breakthrough on schedule is a massive signal to investors that the project is “real.” By the time 2028 rolls around, the sight of a double-decker freight train disappearing into the Sohna hills will be the new normal.