Bombay Central

Mumbai Central (formerly Bombay Central, station code: MMCT) is a major railway station on the Western line, situated in Mumbai, Maharashtra in an area known by the same name. It serves as a major stop for both local and intercity trains with separate platforms between them. It is also a terminal for several long-distance trains including the Mumbai Rajdhani Express.

It is one of the five major terminal stations in Mumbai, the others being Mumbai CSMT, Mumbai LTT, Bandra and Dadar. Trains depart from the station connecting various destinations mostly across states in the northern, western and north-western parts of India. The station was renamed from ''Bombay Central'' to ''Mumbai Central'' in 1997, following the change of Bombay to Mumbai. In October 2017, Western Railway announced that the station code would change from ''BCT'' to ''MMCT'' on 1 February 2018.

History

The Bombay Central station was built in response to the government directive to demolish the Churchgate-Colaba rail section owing to land reclamation needs. The BB&CI had to agree to this back in the 1870s, when it had extended the line to Colaba, when the permission to build the terminus was provided on the condition that in the event of any further reclamation schemes, the railway company would shift its railway to any other location between Marine Lines and Colaba. The railway was provided a notice about the directed demolition in 1920. The BB&CI could not do this until a new terminus was found. A new station was completed of the name ''Bombay Central'' on 18 December 1930, and Colaba Terminus went defunct after 31 December of the same year.

The Station was designed by the British architect Claude Batley, and constructed by the Shapoorji Pallonji in 1930 in a record time of 21 months. The project was then costed INR 15.6 million. The station opened on 18 December 1930.

When the station opened in 1930, ''The Times of India'' suggested that the name Bombay Central was inspired by the Grand Central Terminal in New York City. The paper argued that the station should have been called Kamathipura, after the area it was located in. The paper suggested that the name Kamathipura was probably ruled out, because the area is a red-light district.

The Bombay, Baroda and Central India Railway extended its reach from Baroda to Pathankot via Delhi. The Colaba- Ballard Pier railway station proved insufficient in meeting the demands of a growing population which led the government to make plans for the construction of Bombay Central.

The present suburban route that once ran till Colaba was earlier served by Bellasis Road station. It was renamed Bombay Central (local) after the construction of the long-distance Bombay Central Terminus (BCT) on the eastern side. In October 2017, Western Railway announced that the station code would change from ''BCT'' to ''MMCT'' on 1 February 2018. The change in station code caused problems for people making advanced bookings using the IRCTC app during November 2017.

Infrastructure

Gardens

There are two gardens located outside the station. One of the gardens houses a historic locomotive, popularly known as the "Little red horse". The locomotive was built by English firm Kerr Stuart and Co. in 1928. The engine operated on the Devgarh-Baria Railway Narrow Gauge line, owned by the Princely state of Devgarh-Baria. The line was merged into Bombay, Baroda and Central India Railway (BB&CI) in August 1949, and later became part of the Western Railway. The engine served for 61 years, before being transferred to the Pratapnagar workshop for shunting duties in 1990. It was placed at the garden in front of the Mumbai Central station in 1991 to commemorate its platinum jubilee.

Gallery

File:Mumbai Central Station building- view from West.jpg, Mumbai Central Station building- view from West
File:Mumbai Central Station-Interior view.jpg, Mumbai Central- view of the interior
File:Stained Glass style windows of the Station building- from outside.jpg, Stained glass windows of the station as seen from the Suburban station platform
File:Stained Glass style windows of the Station building- from inside.jpg, The Stained glass windows as seen from the interior FoB of the station.
File:BCT5.JPG, An inside view of Mumbai Central Station
File:12010 Shatabdi Express at Mumbai Central station.jpg, 12010 Shatabdi Express at Mumbai Central station
File:Mumbai Central Local station- View from FoB (northward).jpg, Mumbai Central Local station- View from FoB (northward)
File:Mumbai Central Local station- View from FoB (southward).jpg, Mumbai Central Local station- View from FoB (southward)
File:Mumbai Central Local station from south.jpg, Mumbai Central Local station from south
File:WAP-7 Locomotive outside Mumbai Central Passenger station.jpg, WAP-7 Locomotive outside Mumbai Central Passenger station. As seen from the Suburban station.
File:BB&CIR Logo on Mumbai Central West gate.jpg, BB&CIR Logo on Mumbai Central West gate

References

External links

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Mumbai Central railway station
Railway stations in India opened in 1930
Railway centrals in India
Mumbai WR railway division
Railway stations in Mumbai City district
Mumbai Suburban Railway stations
1930 establishments in British India