Rail transport in India is an important mode of conveyance for
people
A person ( : people) is a being that has certain capacities or attributes such as reason, morality, consciousness or self-consciousness, and being a part of a culturally established form of social relations such as kinship, ownership of proper ...
and
goods
In economics, goods are items that satisfy human wants
and provide utility, for example, to a consumer making a purchase of a satisfying product. A common distinction is made between goods which are transferable, and services, which are not ...
in
India
India, officially the Republic of India ( Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the ...
.
Indian Railways
Indian Railways (IR) is a statutory body under the ownership of Ministry of Railways, Government of India that operates India's national railway system. It manages the fourth largest national railway system in the world by size, with a tot ...
(IR) is the primary operator of rail operations throughout the country. IR is a state-owned organisation of the
Ministry of Railways
A Ministry of Railways is a Cabinet department that exists or has existed in many Commonwealth states as well as others. It generally occurs in countries where railroad transportation is a particularly important part of the national infrastructure. ...
, which historically had its own
government budget
A government budget is a document prepared by the government and/or other political entity presenting its anticipated tax revenues (Inheritance tax, income tax, corporation tax, import taxes) and proposed spending/expenditure (Healthcare, Educ ...
. Between 2019 and 2020, 22.15 million passengers used the Indian Railways network daily. In the same period, 3.32 million metric tons of freight was also shipped daily on the IR network.
Other locally owned public corporations operate various
suburban
A suburb (more broadly suburban area) is an area within a metropolitan area, which may include commercial and mixed-use, that is primarily a residential area. A suburb can exist either as part of a larger city/urban area or as a separa ...
and
urban rail
Urban rail transit is an all-encompassing term for various types of local rail systems providing passenger service within and around urban or suburban areas. The set of urban rail systems can be roughly subdivided into the following categori ...
ways throughout the country, such as
Chennai Metro
The Chennai Metro is a rapid transit system serving the city of Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India. It is the 4th longest metro system In india. The system commenced service in 2015 after partially opening the first phase of the project. The network ...
and the
trams in Kolkata
The tram system in the city of Kolkata, West Bengal, India, operated by West Bengal Transport Corporation (WBTC) after Calcutta Tramways Company (CTC) was dissolved, is the oldest existing tram network operating in India, and oldest operatin ...
. Private sector operations currently exist only for freight trains and railroads, exclusively for non-passenger usage, but there were renewed efforts in 2020 to encourage private sector involvement in the running of passenger trains.
In March 2020, the national rail network comprised of track
over a route of and 7,325 stations.
India's national rail network is the
fourth-largest in the world (after those of the
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., federal district, five ma ...
,
Russia
Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-eigh ...
, and
China). 36.83% of routes are double or multi-tracked.
As of April 2022, or 80% of the broad-gauge routes have been electrified with
25 KV AC
Railway electrification systems using alternating current (AC) at are used worldwide, especially for high-speed rail. It is usually supplied at the standard utility frequency (typically 50 or 60Hz), which simplifies traction substations. The dev ...
electric traction.
It is one of the busiest networks in the world, transporting 8.086 billion passengers and 1.208 billion tonnes of
freight
Cargo consists of bulk goods conveyed by water, air, or land. In economics, freight is cargo that is transported at a freight rate for commercial gain. ''Cargo'' was originally a shipload but now covers all types of freight, including trans ...
annually.
IR is the world's eighth largest employer, with more than 1.254 million employees as of March 2020.
As of March 2020, IR's
rolling stock
The term rolling stock in the rail transport industry refers to railway vehicles, including both powered and unpowered vehicles: for example, locomotives, freight and passenger cars (or coaches), and non-revenue cars. Passenger vehicles can ...
consisted of 293,077
freight wagons, 76,608
passenger coaches
A passenger railroad car or passenger car (United States), also called a passenger carriage, passenger coach (United Kingdom and International Union of Railways), or passenger bogie (India) is a railroad car that is designed to carry passenge ...
and 12,729
locomotives.
Successive administrations of the
Government of India
The Government of India ( ISO: ; often abbreviated as GoI), known as the Union Government or Central Government but often simply as the Centre, is the national government of the Republic of India, a federal democracy located in South Asia, ...
have worked on improving the railways. Projects include the electrification of the entire IR network by 2023, new trains that can operate on existing rail infrastructure at 200 km/h, and new
high-speed railways
High-speed rail (HSR) is a type of rail system that runs significantly faster than traditional rail, using an integrated system of specialised rolling stock and dedicated tracks. While there is no single standard that applies worldwide, lines ...
that can operate at speeds in excess of 300 km/h.
India has also played a supporting role in the improvement of rail infrastructure overseas. , India has invested over $1 billion towards upgrading
railways and trains in Sri Lanka using '
Make in India
Make in India is an initiative by the Government of India to create and encourage companies to develop, manufacture and assemble products made in India and incentivize dedicated investments into manufacturing. The policy approach was to crea ...
' technology. As of 2020, only three rail connections to foreign countries were functioning,
two to Nepal and three to
Bangladesh
Bangladesh (}, ), officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, eighth-most populous country in the world, with a population exceeding 165 million pe ...
, though an
18 km railway link to Bhutan is also under construction and there have been efforts to reinstate the historic
Boat Mail
The Rameswaram (Boat Mail) Express, previously known as Boat Mail or Indo-Ceylon Express, is an express train that connects Rameswaram with the state capital Chennai via Devakottai. During 1900's it was a combined train and steamer ferry s ...
train to Sri Lanka.
History
1832–1852: Industrial railways
The first proposals for railways in India were made in
Madras
Chennai (, ), formerly known as Madras (List of renamed Indian cities and states#Tamil Nadu, the official name until 1996), is the capital city of Tamil Nadu, the southernmost states and territories of India, Indian state. The largest city ...
in 1832.
The first train in India ran from
Red Hills to
Chintadripet
Chintadripet ('originally Chinna Thari Pettai) is a locality in Chennai, in India. Located on the southern banks of the Cooum River, it is a residential-cum-commercial area surrounded by Chepauk
Chepauk is a locality in Chennai, India. Th ...
bridge in 1836–1837.
It was called the
Red Hill Railway and used a rotary
steam locomotive
A steam locomotive is a locomotive that provides the force to move itself and other vehicles by means of the expansion of steam. It is fuelled by burning combustible material (usually coal, oil or, rarely, wood) to heat water in the loco ...
manufactured by William Avery. The railway was built by Sir
Arthur Cotton
General Sir Arthur Thomas Cotton (15 May 1803 – 24 July 1899) was a British general and irrigation engineer.
Cotton devoted his life to the construction of irrigation and navigation canals throughout British India. He helped many people by b ...
and was mainly used for transporting
granite
Granite () is a coarse-grained ( phaneritic) intrusive igneous rock composed mostly of quartz, alkali feldspar, and plagioclase. It forms from magma with a high content of silica and alkali metal oxides that slowly cools and solidifies und ...
stones for road-building work in Madras.
In 1845, Cotton built the
Godavari Dam Construction Railway
The Godavari (IAST: ''Godāvarī'' �od̪aːʋəɾiː is India's second longest river after the Ganga river and drains into the third largest basin in India, covering about 10% of India's total geographical area. Its source is in Trimbakesh ...
at
Dowleswaram
Dowleswaram is a part of Greater Rajamahendravaram Municipal Corporation (GRMC). It also forms a part of Godavari Urban Development Authority.
Landmarks
Sir Arthur Cotton built the Dowleswaram Barrage
The Dowleswaram Barrage Or Dhava ...
in
Rajahmundry
Rajahmundry, officially known as Rajamahendravaram, is a city in the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh and District headquarters of East Godavari district. It is the sixth most populated city in the state. During British rule, the District of Raj ...
, used to supply stone for construction of a dam on the
Godavari
The Godavari (International Alphabet of Sanskrit Transliteration, IAST: ''Godāvarī'' Help:IPA/Sanskrit, �od̪aːʋəɾiː is India's second longest river after the Ganges river, Ganga river and drains into the third largest basin in Indi ...
River.
On 8 May 1845, the
Madras Railway
The Madras Railway (full name Madras Railway Company) played a pioneering role in developing railways in southern India and was merged in 1908 with Southern Mahratta Railway to form Madras and Southern Mahratta Railway.
The Madras Railway wa ...
was incorporated, and the
East Indian Railway Company
The East Indian Railway Company, operating as the East Indian Railway (reporting mark EIR), introduced railways to East India and North India, while the Companies such as the Great Indian Peninsula Railway, South Indian Railway, Bombay, Ba ...
(EIR) was incorporated the same year. On 1 August 1849, the
Great Indian Peninsula Railway
The Great Indian Peninsula Railway (reporting mark GIPR) was a predecessor of the Central Railway (and by extension, the current state-owned Indian Railways), whose headquarters was at the Boree Bunder in Mumbai (later, the Victoria Terminu ...
(GIPR) was incorporated by an Act of Parliament. A "guarantee system" providing free land and guaranteeing five-percent rates of return to private English companies building railways was finalised on 17 August 1849. In 1851, the Solani Aqueduct Railway was built in
Roorkee
Roorkee (Rūṛkī) is a city and a municipal corporation in the Haridwar district of the state of Uttarakhand, India. It is from Haridwar city, the district headquarter. It is spread over a flat terrain under Sivalik Hills of Himalayas. The ...
; freight was hauled by a steam locomotive called ''Thomason'', after a British officer. It was used for transporting construction materials for an
aqueduct
Aqueduct may refer to:
Structures
*Aqueduct (bridge), a bridge to convey water over an obstacle, such as a ravine or valley
*Navigable aqueduct, or water bridge, a structure to carry navigable waterway canals over other rivers, valleys, railw ...
over the Solani river.
In 1852, the
Madras Guaranteed Railway Company was incorporated.
1853–1924: Passenger railways and expansion
The first passenger train in India ran between
Bombay
Mumbai (, ; also known as Bombay — the official name until 1995) is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra and the '' de facto'' financial centre of India. According to the United Nations, as of 2018, Mumbai is the sec ...
(
Bori Bunder
Bori Bunder (also known as Bori Bandar) is an area along the Eastern shore line of Mumbai, India.
Background
This place was used as a storehouse for goods imported and exported from Mumbai. In the local language, 'Bori' mean sack and 'Bandar' ...
) and
Thane
Thane (; also known as Thana, the official name until 1996) is a metropolitan city in Maharashtra, India. It is situated in the north-eastern portion of the Salsette Island. Thane city is entirely within Thane taluka, one of the seven talu ...
on 16 April 1853. The 14-carriage train was hauled by three steam locomotives''Sahib'', ''Sindh'' and ''Sultan''; it carried 400 people and ran on a line of built and operated by the
Great Indian Peninsula Railway
The Great Indian Peninsula Railway (reporting mark GIPR) was a predecessor of the Central Railway (and by extension, the current state-owned Indian Railways), whose headquarters was at the Boree Bunder in Mumbai (later, the Victoria Terminu ...
. This line was built in
broad gauge
A broad-gauge railway is a railway with a track gauge (the distance between the rails) broader than the used by standard-gauge railways.
Broad gauge of , commonly known as Russian gauge, is the dominant track gauge in former Soviet Union (CIS ...
, which became the standard for railways in the country. In May 1854, the Bombay–Thane line was extended to
Kalyan
Kalyan (Pronunciation: əljaːɳ is a city on the banks of Ulhas River in Thane district of Maharashtra state in Konkan division. It is governed by Kalyan-Dombivli Municipal Corporation. Kalyan is a subdivision (Taluka) of Thane district. K ...
by India's first
railway bridge
A bridge is a structure built to span a physical obstacle (such as a body of water, valley, road, or rail) without blocking the way underneath. It is constructed for the purpose of providing passage over the obstacle, which is usually somethi ...
s, the
Thane viaducts, over
Thane Creek
Thane Creek (or Thana Creek) is an inlet in the shoreline of the Arabian Sea that isolates the city of Mumbai (Bombay) from the Konkan region of the Indian mainland. It comprises the area between Mumbra Retibunder and the Mankhurd-Vashi Brid ...
. In Eastern India, the first passenger railway train ran from
Howrah
Howrah (, , alternatively spelled as Haora) is a city in the Indian state of West Bengal. Howrah is located on the western bank of the Hooghly River opposite its twin city of Kolkata. Administratively it lies within Howrah district, and is t ...
(near
Calcutta
Kolkata (, or , ; also known as Calcutta , the official name until 2001) is the capital of the Indian state of West Bengal, on the eastern bank of the Hooghly River west of the border with Bangladesh. It is the primary business, comm ...
) to
Hoogly on 15 August 1854. The line was built and operated by EIR. In August 1855, the EIR Express and
Fairy Queen
In folklore and literature, the Fairy Queen or Queen of the Fairies is a female ruler of the fairies, sometimes but not always paired with a king. Depending on the work, she may be named or unnamed; Titania and Mab are two frequently used name ...
steam locomotives started hauling trains. The first passenger train in South India ran from
Royapuram
Royapuram is a locality in the northern part of the city of Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India. It is best known for its beach, and for Royapuram Railway Station. The station is the first railway station of south India, opening in 1856, and is today ...
and
Veyasarapady to
Wallajah Road on 1 July 1856 on a line built and operated by Madras Railway.
On 24 February 1873, the first
tram
A tram (called a streetcar or trolley in North America) is a rail vehicle that travels on tramway tracks on public urban streets; some include segments on segregated right-of-way. The tramlines or networks operated as public transport ...
way, a
horse-drawn tramway
A horsecar, horse-drawn tram, horse-drawn streetcar (U.S.), or horse-drawn railway (historical), is an animal-powered (usually horse) tram or streetcar.
Summary
The horse-drawn tram (horsecar) was an early form of public rail transport ...
, opened in Calcutta between
Sealdah
Sealdah is a neighbourhood of Central Kolkata in Kolkata district in the Indian state of West Bengal.
Etymology
Jackals (''sheal'' in Bengali) howled around Sealdah. Antiquarians identify it as Shrigaldwipa (Jackal Island). Nearby Beliaghata w ...
and Armenian Ghat Street. On 9 May 1874 a horse-drawn tramway began operation in Bombay between
Colaba
Colaba (; or ISO: Kolābā) is a part of the city of Mumbai, India. It is one of the four peninsulas of Mumbai while the other three are Worli, Bandra and Malabar Hill. During Portuguese rule in the 16th century, the island was known as Kolbh ...
and
Parel
Parel ( ISO: Paraḷ, pronunciation: əɾəɭ is a neighbourhood of Mumbai. Parel used to have a number of textile mills, but these have been replaced by commercial office space development.
History
Originally, Parel was a separate island ...
. In 1880
Calcutta Tramways Company
Calcutta Tramways Company (CTC) was a state-run company that operated trams and buses in and around Kolkata (formerly known as Calcutta) in West Bengal, India. The Kolkata tram is the only operating tramway in India and is the oldest electric t ...
was incorporated.
GIPR started its first workshops in
Byculla
Byculla ( ISO: Bhāykhaḷā; pronunciation: ʱaːjkʰəɭaː is an area of South Mumbai.
Location
Byculla is neighboured by Nagpada and Mumbai Central and Mahalaxmi on the west; Agripada, Jacob Circle on the north-west: Chinchpokli to th ...
in 1854 and Madras Railway set up their first workshop at
Perambur
Perambur is a neighbourhood located in the northern region of Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India.
Etymology
In Tamil, ''pirambu (பிரம்பு)'' means bamboo and ''ur (ஊர்)'' means city or place. Before British rule, this place wa ...
in 1856. The railway boom continued with the incorporation of the
Bombay, Baroda, and Central India Railway (BB&CI) in 1855, Eastern Bengal Railway in 1858, and the
East Coast State Railway
The East Coast State Railway was a railway company operating in India. It was a guaranteed company formed in 1890. It had a brief existence. The southern part of the East Coast State Railway (from Waltair to Vijayawada) was taken over by Madras ...
in 1890. The
Great Southern of India Railway
Great may refer to: Descriptions or measurements
* Great, a relative measurement in physical space, see Size
* Greatness, being divine, majestic, superior, majestic, or transcendent
People
* List of people known as "the Great"
* Artel Great ( ...
(GSIR) and the
Carnatic Railway merged in 1874 to form the
South Indian Railway.
In 1897, lighting in passenger coaches was introduced by many railway companies. In 1902, the
Jodhpur Railway became the first to introduce
electric lights as standard fixtures. In 1920,
electric lighting of signals was introduced between
Dadar
Dadar ( ̪aːd̪əɾ is a densely populated residential and shopping neighbourhood in Mumbai. It is also a prominent railway and bus service hub with local and national connectivity.
Dadar holds the distinction of being Mumbai’s first plann ...
and
Currey Road in Bombay.
1925–1951: Electrification and further expansion
The first
railway budget
Railway budget of India was the Annual Financial Statement of the state-owned Indian Railways, which handles rail transport in India. It was presented every year by the Minister of Railways, representing the Ministry of Railways, in the Parli ...
was presented in 1924. The
Oudh and Rohilkhand Railway
Oudh and Rohilkhand Railway was an extensive railway network in the North India, mostly north of the Ganges, starting from Benares and subsequently up to Delhi.
History
The Oudh and Rohilkhand Railway was formed in 1872 with the assets of ...
was merged with the
East Indian Railway Company
The East Indian Railway Company, operating as the East Indian Railway (reporting mark EIR), introduced railways to East India and North India, while the Companies such as the Great Indian Peninsula Railway, South Indian Railway, Bombay, Ba ...
(EIR) in the same year. In 1930, the route of the
Grand Trunk Express
The 12615 / 12616 Grand Trunk Express (commonly called G.T. or G.T. Express) is a daily Superfast Express train on Indian Railways, running between and Chennai Central. It is a historic train and is one of the oldest trains starting services i ...
was changed to
Delhi
Delhi, officially the National Capital Territory (NCT) of Delhi, is a city and a union territory of India containing New Delhi, the capital of India. Straddling the Yamuna river, primarily its western or right bank, Delhi shares borders wi ...
–Madras.
On 3 February 1925, India's first
electric passenger train ran between
Victoria Terminus (VT) and
Kurla
Kurla (Pronunciation: uɾlaː is a neighbourhood of East Mumbai, India. It is the headquarters of the Kurla taluka of Mumbai Suburban district. The neighbourhood is named after the eponymous East Indian village that it grew out of. It falls u ...
on
1500 V DC overhead traction
with locomotives provided by the
Cammell Laird
Cammell Laird is a British shipbuilding company. It was formed from the merger of Laird Brothers of Birkenhead and Johnson Cammell & Co of Sheffield at the turn of the twentieth century. The company also built railway rolling stock until 1929, ...
and
Waggonfabrik Uerdingen companies. Later that year the VT–
Bandra
Bandra (Indian English, æːɳɖɾa also known as Vandre (Help:IPA/Marathi, �aːn̪d̪ɾe is an upscale coastal suburb located in Mumbai (Bombay) area of the Konkan division, Maharashtra, India. The suburb is located to the immediate nor ...
section was electrified with an
elevated platform at
Sandhurst Road
Sandhurst Road (station code: SNRD) is a railway station serving Dongri area of South Mumbai, India, on the Central and Harbour Lines of the Mumbai Suburban Railway. It is the third stop from Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus.
Named after ...
.
Kurla–Kalyan and lines to
Poona
Pune (; ; also known as Poona, ( the official name from 1818 until 1978) is one of the most important industrial and educational hubs of India, with an estimated population of 7.4 million As of 2021, Pune Metropolitan Region is the largest i ...
and
Igatpuri
Igatpuri (Pronunciation: ɡət̪puɾiː formerly known as Egutpoora) is a town and a Hill Station. It is also a municipal council in Nashik District in the Indian state of Maharashtra. It is located in the Western Ghats. Igatpuri railway sta ...
were electrified in 1926
and the Bandra–
Virar
Virar (Pronunciation: �iɾaɾ is a coastal city in taluka Vasai and district of Palghar, India. It is clubbed into Vasai-Virar city, administered by Vasai-Virar Municipal Corporation. It lies in south part of Palghar District in Vasai Tal ...
section was electrified by January 1928. On 1 June 1930, the
Deccan Queen
The 12123 / 12124 Deccan Queen is a daily Indian passenger train service operated by the Central Railway zone of the Indian Railways connecting the cities of Mumbai and Pune. Introduced on June 1, 1930, the Deccan Queen was India's "first sup ...
began running, hauled by a WCP-1 ( 20024, old No. EA/1 4006) with seven coaches, on the GIPR's electrified route from Bombay VT to Poona.
The Frontier Mail made its inaugural run between Bombay VT and
Peshawar
Peshawar (; ps, پېښور ; hnd, ; ; ur, ) is the sixth most populous city in Pakistan, with a population of over 2.3 million. It is situated in the north-west of the country, close to the International border with Afghanistan. It is ...
in 1928. In 1929, the Grand Trunk Express began running between Peshawar and
Mangalore
Mangalore (), officially known as Mangaluru, is a major port city of the Indian state of Karnataka. It is located between the Arabian Sea and the Western Ghats about west of Bangalore, the state capital, 20 km north of Karnataka– ...
and the Punjab Limited Express began running between Bombay and
Lahore
Lahore ( ; pnb, ; ur, ) is the second most populous city in Pakistan after Karachi and 26th most populous city in the world, with a population of over 13 million. It is the capital of the province of Punjab where it is the largest ...
. Technical advancements led to automatic colour-light signals become operational on GIPR's lines between Bombay VT and Byculla in 1928. This was extended to the Byculla–Kurla section in the following year.
1951–1983: Zonal re-organisation and further developments
India's railways were re-organised into regional zones beginning in 1951 with the creation of the
Southern Railway on 14 April and the
Central Railway and
Western Railways
The Western Railway (abbreviated WR) is one of the 19 zones of Indian Railways and is among the busiest railway networks in India, headquartered at Mumbai, Maharashtra. The major railway routes of Indian Railways which come under Western Rail ...
on 5 November.
The post of
Chief Commissioner of Railways was abolished and the
Railway Board
The Ministry of Railways is a ministry in the Government of India, responsible for the country's rail transport. The ministry operates the statutory body Indian Railways, an organisation that operates as a monopoly in rail transport and is h ...
adopted the practice of making its senior-most member chairman.
In the same year, the government of
West Bengal
West Bengal (, Bengali: ''Poshchim Bongo'', , abbr. WB) is a state in the eastern portion of India. It is situated along the Bay of Bengal, along with a population of over 91 million inhabitants within an area of . West Bengal is the four ...
entered into an agreement with Calcutta Tramways Co. to take over its administrative functions. On 14 April 1952, the
Northern Railway, the
Eastern Railway and the North-Eastern Railway were created.
On 1 August 1955 the
South-Eastern Railway was split from the Eastern Railway, and, the following year, divisional systems of administration were set up for the various regional zones. In 1958, the North-Eastern Railway split to form a new
Northeast Frontier Railway
The Northeast Frontier Railway (abbreviated NFR) is one of the 19 railway zones of the Indian Railways. It is headquartered in Maligaon, Guwahati in the state of Assam, and responsible for operation and expansion of rail network all across No ...
.
In 1952, fans and lights were mandated for all compartments in
passenger accommodation and
sleeping accommodation was introduced in coaches. In 1956 the first fully air-conditioned train was introduced between Howrah and Delhi. In 1966 the first
containerised
Containerization is a system of intermodal freight transport using intermodal containers (also called shipping containers and International Organization for Standardization, ISO containers). Containerization is also referred as "Container St ...
freight services began, between Bombay and
Ahmedabad.
In 1957 India Railways decided to adopt
25 kV AC electrification and chose the
SNCF (French National Railway) as its technical consultant.
The Main Line Electrification Project was established in the same year. Raj Kharswan–Dongoposi became the first section to be electrified with 25 kV AC traction,
with the first train running on 11 August 1960.
In 1966 electrification of several suburban tracks around Delhi, Madras and Calcutta was completed with the 25 kV AC system. In 1979 the Main Line Electrification Project was reconstituted into the
Central Organisation for Railway Electrification
The Central Organisation for Railway Electrification (CORE) is an organizational unit of Indian Railways responsible for railway electrification of the Indian Railways network. The organisation, founded in 1979, is headquartered in Prayagraj, ...
(CORE).
1984–present: Rapid transit and later developments

The
Calcutta Metro became the first
metro
Metro, short for metropolitan, may refer to:
Geography
* Metro (city), a city in Indonesia
* A metropolitan area, the populated region including and surrounding an urban center
Public transport
* Rapid transit, a passenger railway in an urban ...
in the country with the 24 October 1984 line between
Esplanade
An esplanade or promenade is a long, open, level area, usually next to a river or large body of water, where people may walk. The historical definition of ''esplanade'' was a large, open, level area outside fortress or city walls to provide cle ...
and
Bhowanipore
Bhowanipore (also Bhowanipur; bn, ভবানীপুর) is a neighbourhood of South Kolkata in Kolkata district of West Bengal, India.
History
In 1717, the East India Company obtained the right to rent from 38 villages surrounding their s ...
. In 1988 the first
Shatabdi Express
Shatabdi Express trains are a series of fast passenger trains operated by Indian Railways to connect important metro cities. Shatabdi Express are day-trains and mostly return to their origin station the same day. The trains were first introduc ...
was introduced between New Delhi and
Jhansi
Jhansi (; Hindi: झांसी, Urdu: ) is a historic city in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. It lies in the region of Bundelkhand on the banks of the Pahuj River, in the extreme south of Uttar Pradesh. Jhansi is the administrative ...
(later extended to
Bhopal
Bhopal (; ) is the capital city of the Indian state of Madhya Pradesh and the administrative headquarters of both Bhopal district and Bhopal division. It is known as the ''City of Lakes'' due to its various natural and artificial lakes. It ...
), and was the fastest train in India at the time. In 1993, air-conditioned third-tier coaches were introduced as well as a sleeper class separate from second class. In 1999, the South East Central Railway zone was established. On 6 July 2002, the
East Coast
East Coast may refer to:
Entertainment
* East Coast hip hop, a subgenre of hip hop
* "East Coast" (ASAP Ferg song), 2017
* "East Coast" (Saves the Day song), 2004
* East Coast FM, a radio station in Co. Wicklow, Ireland
* East Coast Swing, a f ...
,
South Western,
South East Central,
North Central, and
West Central zones were created. On 5 April 2016,
Gatimaan Express
The 12049 / 12050 Gatimaan Express is India's first semi-high speed train that runs between Delhi and Jhansi. It takes 265 minutes (around 4.5 hours) to cover the journey from Hazrat Nizamuddin to Virangana Lakshmibai Junction railway sta ...
, then India's fastest train with a maximum speed of , made its first run from Delhi to
Agra
Agra (, ) is a city on the banks of the Yamuna river in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh, about south-east of the national capital New Delhi and 330 km west of the state capital Lucknow. With a population of roughly 1.6 million, Agra is ...
.
India's first computerised ticketing and reservation was introduced in New Delhi in 1986. In 1990, the first self-printing ticket machine (SPTM) was introduced. In September 1996, the CONCERT computerised reservation system was fully deployed at New Delhi, Mumbai and Chennai. The project was completed nationwide on 18 April 1999. In 1998, coupon validating machines (CVMs) were introduced at
Mumbai CST
Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus (officially Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus, Bombay station code: CSMT ( mainline)/ST (suburban)), is a historic railway terminus and UNESCO World Heritage Site in Mumbai, Maharashtra, India.
The terminus was ...
. Credit cards could be used to book tickets and reservations starting in 1999, and in February 2000, the Indian Railways launched its web site and began taking online train reservations and ticketing on 3 August 2002, which was extended to many cities in December. On 26 September 2013, the
Tatkal system of ticketing extended to ordinary trains.
On 16 January 1995, the first regularly scheduled services using the
2 × 25 kV system of traction started on
Bina–
Katni
Katni officially Murwara is a city on the banks of the Katni River in Madhya Pradesh
Madhya Pradesh (, ; meaning 'central province') is a state in central India. Its capital city, capital is Bhopal, and the largest city is Indore, with Jab ...
. On 5 February 2012, Western Railway switched completely to 25 kV AC traction, ending its use of 1.5 kV DC traction. On 11 April 2016, Central Railway completed switching to 25 kV AC traction, ending the use of DC traction on the country's main-line rail network. Indian Railways announced on 31 March 2017 that the entire rail network would be electrified by 2022.
Historical railway length
This table shows the length of the railway over time.
Route km : The distance between two points on the railway irrespective of the number of lines connecting them, whether single line or multiple line.
Running track km: The length of all running tracks excluding tracks in sidings, yards and crossings.
Total track km: The length of all running tracks and tracks including tracks in sidings, yards and crossings.
Rolling stock
Locomotives

Locomotives in
India
India, officially the Republic of India ( Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the ...
largely consist of
electric
Electricity is the set of physical phenomena associated with the presence and motion of matter that has a property of electric charge. Electricity is related to magnetism, both being part of the phenomenon of electromagnetism, as described b ...
and List of diesel locomotives of India, diesel locomotives. The world's first Compressed natural gas, compressed natural gas (CNG) locomotives are also used. Steam locomotives are used only in restored train, heritage trains.
In India, locomotives are classified according to their gauge, motive power, the work they are suited for and their power or model number. The class name, composed of four or five letters, encodes this information. The first letter denotes the track gauge; the second denotes their motive power, diesel or alternating current (electric); the third letter denotes the type of traffic for which they are suited (goods, passenger, multi or shunting). The fourth letter used to denote the chronological model number, but from 2002 it denotes the horsepower range for diesel locomotives. Electric locomotives are not covered by this scheme and not all diesels are covered; for these, the fourth letter denotes their chronological model number.
A locomotive may have a fifth letter in its class name which denotes a technical variant, subclass or subtype, indicating a variation in the basic model or series, possibly different motors or a different manufacturer. With the modern scheme for classifying diesel locomotives the fifth letter further refines the horsepower indication in increments: 'A' for 100 hp, 'B' for 200 hp, 'C' for 300 hp, etc.
Under this scheme, a 'WDM-3A', for example, refers to a wide-gauge diesel multi-use 3100 hp locomotive, while a 'WDM-3D' would be a 3400 hp locomotive and 'WDM-3F' would be 3600 hp locomotive.
[This classification system does not apply to heritage steam locomotives which retain their historical class names such as M class or Indian locomotive class WP, WP class.']
Diesel locomotives are fitted with auxiliary power units which save nearly 88% of fuel while idling.
Goods wagons

A new wagon numbering system was adopted by Indian Railways in 2003.
Wagons are allocated 11 digits,
making identification easier and allowing for computerisation of a wagon's information. The first two digits indicate the type of wagon, the third and fourth digits indicate the owning railway, the fifth and sixth digits indicate the year of manufacture, the seventh through tenth digits indicate the ''Individual Wagon Number,'' and the last digit is a ''check digit.''
IR's bulk requirement of wagons is met by wagon manufacturing units both in public and private sectors as well as other State-owned enterprise, public sector units under the administrative control of Ministry of Railways.
Passenger coaches

On long-distance routes and also on some shorter routes, IR uses two primary types of coach design types. ICF coach, in production from 1955 until January 2018, constitute the bulk of the current stock. These coaches, considered to have inadequate safety features, are slowly being phased out. , around 40,000 coaches are still in operation. These coaches are being replaced with LHB coach. Introduced in mid '90s, these coaches are lighter, safer and are capable of speeds up to .
IR has introduced new electric multiple unit, electric multiple unit (EMU) train sets for long-distance routes. One such, Vande Bharat Express, Train-18 is under operation and another, Train 20, Train-20 is expected to run from 2020. These train sets are expected to replace locomotive-hauled trains on long-distance routes.
On regional short-distance routes, IR runs MEMU, Mainline electrical multiple unit (MEMU) or DEMU, Diesel electrical multiple unit (DEMU) trains, depending on the traction available. These train sets are self-propelled with capability for faster acceleration or deceleration and are expected to reduce congestion on dense routes. Passenger locomotive-hauled trains, having frequent stops, are slowly being replaced with train sets across India.
On suburban commuter routes around large urban centers, IR runs trains with normal electric multiple unit (EMU) coaches. These are popularly called "local trains" or simply "locals".
EMUs are also used in metros. All train sets used in metros are air-conditioned. Kolkata trams almost always consist of a single motor coach. A new twin coach tram was introduced in Kolkata in 2019.
Manufacturing
The Chittaranjan Locomotive Works in Chittaranjan and Banaras Locomotive Works in Varanasi make electric locomotives. The Integral Coach Factory in Perambur, Chennai, makes integral coaches. These have a monocoque construction, and the floor is an integral unit with the undercarriage. The Rail Coach Factory in Kapurthala also makes coaches. The Titagarh Wagons builds freight wagons. The Rail Wheel Factory at Yelahanka, Bangalore, and the Rail Wheel Plant, Bela, in Chhapra, Bihar, manufactures wheels and axles. Diesel-Loco Modernisation Works, Patiala upgrades the diesel locomotives. Some electric locomotives have been supplied by Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited, BHEL, Jhansi and Palakkad, and locomotive components are manufactured in several other plants around the country.
Network
Tracks
As of 31 March 2020, IR network spans of track length, while the route length is .
Track sections are rated for speeds ranging from , though the maximum speed attained by passenger trains is 180 km/h (110 mph) during trial runs. Almost the entire broad-gauge network is equipped with Track (rail transport)#Continuous welded rail, long-welded, high-tensile strength Rail profile#Rail weights and sizes, 52 kg/60 kg 90 UTS rails and prestressed concrete, pre-stressed concrete (PSC) sleepers with elastic fastenings.
broad gauge is the predominant track gauge, gauge used by IR and spans of route (94.10% of total route network),
It is the broadest gauge in use across the world for regular passenger movement.
Broad gauge generated 100% of the freight output (net tonne-kilometres) and more than 99% of the passenger output (passenger kilometres) in the fiscal year 2019–20.
The tracks and and narrow gauge tracks are present on fewer routes. All of these routes, except the heritage routes, are being converted to broad gauge. The metre gauge tracks were (4.21% of total route network) and narrow gauges tracks were (2.50% of total route network)
Urban rail transit systems in India mostly use standard gauge tracks. These systems are operated by metro/tram rail corporations which are independent of Indian Railways. Trams in Kolkata, the only remaining tram service in the country, uses standard gauge tracks. Line 1 of the Kolkata Metro and Delhi Metro use the same broad gauge tracks as main-line railways. All other metro linesconstructed, under construction and futureuse standard gauge tracks. Metro trains operate in Kolkata Metro, Kolkata, Delhi Metro, Delhi, Bengaluru Metro, Bengaluru, Chennai Metro, Chennai, Mumbai Metro, Mumbai, Hyderabad Metro, Hyderabad, Jaipur Metro, Jaipur, Kochi Metro, Kochi, Nagpur Metro, Nagpur, Ahmedabad Metro, Ahmedabad and Lucknow Metro, Lucknow. Rapid Metro Gurgaon, Gurgaon has a Metro system operated by a private organisation. Metro tracks are being constructed or planned in all million-plus cities in the country.
Electrification
, IR has electrified 80% or of the total broad-gauge route. India uses 25 kV AC railway electrification, 25 kV 50 Hz AC traction on all its electrified tracks.
Railway electrification in India began with the first electric train, between Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus and Kurla on the Harbour Line, on 3 February 1925 on the Great Indian Peninsula Railway (GIPR) at 1500 V DC. Heavy gradients in the Western Ghats necessitated the introduction of electric traction on the GIPR to Igatpuri on the North East line and Pune on the South East line. On 5 January 1928, 1500 V DC traction was introduced on the suburban section of the Bombay, Baroda and Central India Railway between Colaba and Borivili, and between Madras Beach and Tambaram of the Madras and Southern Mahratta Railway on 11 May 1931, to meet growing traffic needs.
The 3000 V DC electrification of the Howrah-Burdwan section of the Eastern Railway Zone (India), Eastern Railway was completed in 1958. The first 3000 V DC EMU service began on the Howrah-Sheoraphuli section on 14 December 1957.
Research and trials in Europe, particularly on French Railways (SNCF), indicated that 25 kV AC was an economical electrification system. Indian Railways decided in 1957 to adopt 25 kV AC as its standard, with SNCF their consultant in the early stages. The first 25 kV AC section was Raj Kharswan–Dongoaposi on the South Eastern Railway Zone, India, South Eastern Railway in 1960. The first 25 kV AC electric multiple unit, EMUs, for Kolkata suburban service, began service in September 1962. For continuity, the Howrah–Burdwan section of the Eastern Railway and the Madras Beach–Tambaram section of the Southern Railway were converted to 25 kV AC by 1968. Because of limitations in the DC traction system, a decision was made to convert the electric traction system of the Mumbai suburban rail network of WR and CR from 1.5kV DC to 25 kV AC in 1996–97. The conversion from DC to AC traction was completed in 2012 by the Western Railway, and in 2016 by the Central Railway. Since then, the entire electrified mainline rail network in India uses 25 kV AC, and DC traction is used only for metros and trams.
Indian Railways announced on 31 March 2017 that the country's entire rail network would be electrified by 2022.
Though not a new concept, the electrification in India has now been committed to with an investment of to electrify the entire network and eliminate the cost of fuel for transportation, which will amount to a savings of overall. These savings will allow the government channel funds to invest in the modernisation of the railway infrastructure. Close to 30 billion units of electricity will be required for railway electrification on an annual basis by 2022, which will lead to opportunities for IPPs of conventional power.
All metro routes, as well as the Kolkata tram, are electrified with Direct current, DC traction. Many metro routes employ the third rail method for electric traction.
Signaling and telecommunication

IR uses a range of signalling technologies and methods to manage its train operations based on traffic density and safety requirements.
, around of the route uses Automatic block signaling, automatic block signalling for train operations – concentrated in high density routes, large cities and junctions.
Remaining routes are based on absolute block signalling with trains manually controlled by signalmen from the signal boxes typically located at stations. Few low density routes still use North American railway signaling#Absolute or manual block, manual block signalling methods with communication on track clearance based on physical exchange of tokens. In a few sections, intermediate block signalling is provided to further enhance line capacity with minimal investment. , 602 block sections have intermediate block signals on IR.
IR primarily uses railway signal#Color light signals, coloured signal lights, which replaced railway signal#Mechanical signals, semaphores and disc-based signalling (dependent on position or colour).
IR uses two-aspect, three-aspect and four (or multiple) aspect colour signalling across its network.
Signals at most stations are interlocked using Interlocking#Electro-mechanical interlocking, panel interlocking, Interlocking#Relay interlocking, route-relay interlocking or Interlocking#Electronic interlocking, electronic interlocking methods, which eliminate human error. IR uses track circuiting, and block proving axle counters for train detection. , 5,886 stations across IR have interlocked stations and multi-aspect signalling. Around 99% of key routes (A, B, C and D) have track circuitry or block proving axle counters for automated train detection. IR has about 59,105 route kilometers of optical fiber cable network across India, that is used for train control, voice and data communication. Around of the route is covered by GSM-R based Mobile Train Radio Communication.
In December 2017, IR announced that it will implement European Train Control System, ETCS Level 2 system for signalling and control on key routes with an investment of . Currently IR uses Centralized traffic control, Centralised Traffic Control (CTC) on the busy Ghaziabad – Kanpur route and real-time train monitoring systems on Mumbai and Kolkata suburban routes.
International connections
Rail links between India and neighbouring countries are not well developed.
Bangladesh
Transport in Bangladesh, Bangladesh is connected by the biweekly Maitree Express, which runs from Kolkata, Kolkata railway station to Dhaka Cantonment railway station, Dhaka Cantonment, the Bandhan Express, which began running commercial trips between Kolkata railway station and Khulna railway station and Mitali Express connecting New Jalpaiguri Junction railway station, New Jalpaiguri railway station with Dhaka Cantonment railway station which started commercial services from 1 June 2022.
Indian and Bangladeshi governments planned to start work by January 2015 on a new rail link to ease surface transport. India will build a railway linking Tripura's capital Agartala with Bangladesh's southeastern city of Akhaura, an important railway junction connected to Chittagong port, resource-rich Sylhet and Dhaka. An agreement to implement the railway project was signed between India's former Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh, Manmohan Singh and Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina during her visit to India in January 2010. The total cost of the proposed project is estimated at 252 crore (2.5 billion). The Indian Railway Construction Company (IRCON) would lay the new railway tracks on both sides of the border. Of the rail line, of tracks fall in Indian territory.
The Northeast Frontier Railways (NFR) is laying tracks to connect Tripura's southernmost border town, Sabroom, south of here. From Sabroom, the Chittagong international sea port is .
Bhutan
An railway link with Transport in Bhutan, Bhutan is being constructed from Hasimara railway station, Hasimara in
West Bengal
West Bengal (, Bengali: ''Poshchim Bongo'', , abbr. WB) is a state in the eastern portion of India. It is situated along the Bay of Bengal, along with a population of over 91 million inhabitants within an area of . West Bengal is the four ...
to Toribari in Bhutan.
Myanmar
No rail link exists with Transport in Myanmar, Myanmar but a railway line is to be built from Jiribam (in Manipur) to Tamu, Myanmar, Tamu through Imphal and Moreh, India, Moreh.
The construction of this missing link, as per the feasibility study conducted by the Ministry of External Affairs through RITES Ltd, is estimated to cost .
Nepal
Two rail links to Transport in Nepal, Nepal exist: A passenger service between Jainagar, Bihar, Jainagar and Janakpur which is run and operated by Nepal Railways and freight services between Raxaul and Birganj.
Pakistan
Two trains were operated to Transport in Pakistan, Pakistan: the Samjhauta Express between
Delhi
Delhi, officially the National Capital Territory (NCT) of Delhi, is a city and a union territory of India containing New Delhi, the capital of India. Straddling the Yamuna river, primarily its western or right bank, Delhi shares borders wi ...
and
Lahore
Lahore ( ; pnb, ; ur, ) is the second most populous city in Pakistan after Karachi and 26th most populous city in the world, with a population of over 13 million. It is the capital of the province of Punjab where it is the largest ...
, and the Thar Express between Jodhpur and Karachi. Since 2019, both services have been shut down.
Services
Passenger service
Station categories
From December 2017, stations are categorised into the Non-Suburban Group NSG1 to NSG6, the Suburban Group SG1 to SG3, and the Halt Group HG1 to HG3 based on the earnings, passenger footfall and strategic importance.
[
Before December 2017, stations were classified into A1, A, B, C, D, E and F categories, based only on the passenger earnings from the sales of platform tickets, thus limiting the ability of IR to better focus its investments in passenger amenities.][Railways revise station categories to improve services]
, The Economic Times, Economic Times, 28 Dec 2017.
Travel classes
IR has several classes of travelwith or without air conditioning; a train may include just one or several of these. Slow passenger trains have only unreserved seating class whereas Rajdhani, Duronto, Shatabdi, Garib Rath and Yuva trains only have air-conditioned classes. The fares are different for each class, with unreserved seating class being the cheapest. The fare of Rajdhani, Duronto and Shatabdi trains includes food served in the train, but for other trains food has to be bought separately. In September 2016, the IR introduced dynamic fares for all accommodation classes for Rajdhani, Duronto and Shatabdi trains (except 1AC and EC classes) to shore up revenue. In long-distance trains a pantry car is usually included and the food is served at the berth or seat itself. Luxury trains such as Palace on Wheels have separate dining cars but fares are comparable to a five-star hotel.
A standard passenger train has four unreserved (also called "general") coaches, two at the front and two at the end, of which one may be exclusively for women. The number of other coaches varies according to the demand and route. A luggage coach may be included at the front or end. In some mail trains, a separate mail coach is attached. Lavatories are communal and feature both the Indian style as well as the Western style.
The following table lists the classes in operation. A train may not include all of these classes.
At the rear of the train is a special compartment known as the Brake van#India, guard's cabin. It is fitted with a transceiver and is where the guard usually gives the all-clear signal before the train departs.
Train types
Trains are sorted into categories which dictate the number of stops on a route, their priority on the network and their fare structure. Each express train is identified by a five-digit number. If the first digit is one or two, they are long-distance express trains. If the first digit is zero, the train is a special train which will operate for a limited period of time with a different fare structure. A first digit of five denotes a passenger train.
The second digit indicates the zone operating the train. However, for high-speed trains, the second digit is either zero or two (the first remains one or two).[ The third digit denotes the division within the zone which is responsible for maintenance and cleanliness, and the last two digits are the train's serial number.] The train numbering system was changed from four digits from December 2010, to accommodate an increasing number of trains.
Trains traveling in opposite directions along the same route are usually labelled with consecutive numbers. However, there is considerable variation in train numbers; some zones, such as the Central Railway, have a less-systematic method of numbering trains.
Trains are classified by average speed. A faster train has fewer stops (halts) than a slower one, and is usually used for long-distance travel. Most express trains have special names to identify them easily. The names of the trains usually denote the regions they connect; the routes they traverse; a famous person; or a tourist spot connected with the train.
Tourism
There are several train services which run for tourists:
* The ''Palace on Wheels'' is a luxury-train service, frequently hauled by a steam locomotive, to promote tourism in Rajasthan. The train has a seven-night, eight-day itinerary on a round trip from New Delhi via Jaipur, Sawai Madhopur and Chittaurgarh, Udaipur, Jaisalmer, Jodhpur, Bharatpur, India, Bharatpur and Agra
Agra (, ) is a city on the banks of the Yamuna river in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh, about south-east of the national capital New Delhi and 330 km west of the state capital Lucknow. With a population of roughly 1.6 million, Agra is ...
.
* The ''Royal Rajasthan on Wheels'' covers a number of tourist destinations in Rajasthan. The seven-day, eight-night tour is a round trip from New Delhi's Safdarjung station via Jodhpur, Udaipur and Chittaurgarh, Ranthambore National Park and Jaipur, Khajuraho, Varanasi and Sarnath, and Agra.
* The ''Maharajas' Express'', a luxury train operated by the Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC), runs on five routes to about 12 destinations across north-West and central India (centered around Rajasthan) from October to April.
* The ''Deccan Odyssey'' covers tourist destinations in Maharashtra and Goa. Its seven-night, eight-day tour begins in Mumbai and stops at Jaigad Fort, Ganapatipule and Ratnagiri, Sindhudurg, Tarkarli and Sawantwadi, Goa, Kolhapur and Pune (Day 5), Aurangabad, Maharashtra, Aurangabad and Ellora Caves, and Ajanta Caves and Nashik. The ''Golden Chariot'' runs on two tours: Pride of the South and Splendor of the South.
* The ''Golden Chariot'' is a luxury train service which connects tourist destinations in Karnataka, Goa, Kerala & Tamil Nadu.
* The ''Mahaparinirvan Express'', an air-conditioned service also known as the Buddhist Circuit Train, is run by the IRCTC for Buddhist pilgrims. Its seven-night, eight-day tour begins in New Delhi and visits Bodh Gaya, Rajgir and Nalanda, Varanasi and Sarnath, Kushinagar and Lumbini, Sravasti and the Taj Mahal.
* The ''Fairy Queen
In folklore and literature, the Fairy Queen or Queen of the Fairies is a female ruler of the fairies, sometimes but not always paired with a king. Depending on the work, she may be named or unnamed; Titania and Mab are two frequently used name ...
'', a tourist attraction as the world's oldest operating steam engine, hauls a luxury train from Delhi to Alwar.
Ticketing
India has some of the lowest train fares in the world. Basic passenger traffic is heavily subsidised by more-expensive higher-class fares. Until the late 1980s, Indian Railways ticket reservations were done manually. In 1987 the Railways started using a computerised ticketing system. The entire ticketing system went online in 1995 to provide up-to-date information on status and availability. The ticketing network is computerised to a large extent, with the exception of some remote places. Computerised tickets can be booked for any two points in the country, through the Internet and via mobile phones, though this method carries an additional surcharge.
Discounted tickets are available for senior citizens (above 60 years) and some other categories of passengers including the disabled, students, athletes, persons affected by serious diseases, or persons appearing for competitive examinations. One compartment of the lowest class of accommodation is reserved for women in every passenger-carrying train. Some berths or seats in sleeper class and second class are also reserved for women. Season tickets permitting unlimited travel on specific sections or specific trains for a specific time period may also be available. Foreign tourists can buy an Indrail Pass, which is modelled on the Eurail Pass, permitting unlimited travel in India for a specific time period.
For long-distance travel, reservation of a berth can be made up to 120 days before departure.[ Details such as name, age and concession (if eligible) are required and are recorded on the ticket. The ticket price usually includes the base fare, which depends on the classification of the train (example: super-fast surcharge if the train is classified as super-fast), the class in which one wishes to travel and the reservation charge for overnight journeys.
If a seat is not available then the ticket is given a waitlist number; otherwise the ticket is confirmed and a berth number is printed on the ticket. A person receiving a wait-listed ticket may be able to obtain a confirmed ticket if there are sufficient cancellations.][ Some of the tickets are assigned to the Reservation against Cancellation (RAC), which is between the waiting list and the confirmed list.][ These allow the ticket holder to board the train and obtain an allotted seat decided by a ticket collector, after the ticket collector has ascertained that a seat is vacant.
Reserved railway tickets can be booked through the website of Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC)] and also through mobile phones via Short message service, SMS. Tickets booked through this site are categorised into iTickets and eTickets. iTickets are booked by a passenger and then printed and delivered to the passenger. eTickets are printed by the passenger and carried while travelling. While travelling on an eTicket, one must carry an authorised valid photo identity card. Cancellation of eTickets is done online, without the requirement for the passenger to go to any counter. Unreserved tickets are available for purchase on the platform at any time before departure. An unreserved-ticket holder may only board the general-compartment class. All suburban networks issue unreserved tickets valid for a limited time. For frequent commuters, a season pass (monthly or quarterly) guarantees unlimited travel between two stops.
Freight service
In the freight segment, IR ferries various commodities and fuels in industrial, consumer, and agricultural segments across India. IR has historically subsidised the passenger segment with income from the freight business. As a result, freight services are unable to compete with other modes of transport on both cost and speed of delivery, leading to continuous erosion of market share. To counter this downward trend, IR has started new initiatives in freight segments including the upgrade of existing goods sheds, attracting private capital to build multi-commodity multi-modal logistics terminals, changing container sizes, operating time-tabled freight trains, and tweaking with the freight pricing/product mix. Also, end-to-end integrated transport solutions such as Konkan Railway Corporation#RORO, roll-on, roll-off (RORO) service, a Rolling highway, road-rail system pioneered by Konkan Railway Corporation in 1999 to carry trucks on flatbed truck, flatbed trailers, is now being extended to other routes across India.
A potential game-changer for IR in the freight segment are the new Dedicated Freight Corridor Corporation of India, dedicated freight corridors that are expected to be completed by 2020. When fully implemented, the new corridors, spanning around , could support hauling of trains up to 1.5 km in length with 32.5 ton axle-load at speeds of . They will also free-up capacity on dense passenger routes and allow IR to run more trains at higher speeds. Additional corridors are being planned to augment the freight infrastructure in the country.
Urban rail
Metro systems
India currently has 13 metro systems. The first modern rapid transit in India is the Kolkata Metro, which started operations in 1984 as the 17th Zone of Indian Railways. The Delhi Metro which started in 2002, is the largest metro system which connects to few other nearby cities in the National Capital Region (India), National Capital Region. As of January 2021, India has of operational metro lines and 540 stations across 13 systems. A further 578.34 km of lines are under construction. Metro rail lines in India are composed of mainly standard gauge. Projects like the Kolkata Metro and Delhi Metro used broad gauge for their earliest lines but all new projects in India are on standard gauge as rolling stock is of standard gauge.
List of operational metro systems in India
Suburban rail
The Mumbai Suburban Railway is India's first commuter rail system and transports 7.5 million passengers daily, the highest passenger-density in the world. The Kolkata Suburban Railway was established in Kolkata in 1854.
The operational suburban rail systems in India are: the Mumbai Suburban Railway, the Kolkata Suburban Railway, the Chennai Suburban Railway, the Lucknow–Kanpur Suburban Railway, the Delhi Suburban Railway, the Pune Suburban Railway, the Hyderabad Multi-Modal Transport System, the Barabanki–Lucknow Suburban Railway
and the Pernem–Karwar Suburban Railway.
Other planned systems are Bengaluru Commuter Rail, Nagpur broad-gauge Metro, Ahmedabad Suburban Railway and Coimbatore Suburban Railway.
List of operational suburban railway systems in India
Regional rail
Regional rail, Regional Rapid Transit systems in India are Public transport, passenger Rail transport, rail services that operate beyond the limits of urban areas, and either connect similarly sized cities, or metropolitan cities and surrounding towns/cities, outside at the outer rim of a suburban belt. The following list excludes Slow and fast passenger trains in India, Passenger Train services provided by Indian Railways
Indian Railways (IR) is a statutory body under the ownership of Ministry of Railways, Government of India that operates India's national railway system. It manages the fourth largest national railway system in the world by size, with a tot ...
.
List of operational Suburban Railway Systems in India
Monorail
Monorail is generally considered a feeder system for the metro trains in India. The Mumbai Monorail, which started in 2014, was the first operational monorail network in India (excluding the Skybus Metro) since Patiala State Monorail Trainways closed in 1927.
Other planned systems are: the Chennai Monorail, the Kolkata Monorail, the Allahabad Monorail, the Bengaluru Monorail, the Delhi Monorail, the Indore Monorail, the Kanpur Monorail, the Navi Mumbai Monorail, the Patna Monorail, the Pune Monorail, the Ahmedabad Monorail, the Aizawl Monorail, the Bhubaneswar Monorail, the Jodhpur Monorail, the Kota Monorail, the Nagpur Monorail and the Nashik Monorail.
Light rail
Like monorail, light rail is also considered a feeder for the metro systems. The planned systems are Kolkata Light Rail Transit and Delhi Light Rail Transit.
Tram
In addition to trains, trams were introduced in many cities in the late 19th century, though almost all of these were phased out. The trams in Kolkata
The tram system in the city of Kolkata, West Bengal, India, operated by West Bengal Transport Corporation (WBTC) after Calcutta Tramways Company (CTC) was dissolved, is the oldest existing tram network operating in India, and oldest operatin ...
are currently the only tram system in the country. Trams in Kolkata (formerly Calcutta), West Bengal
West Bengal (, Bengali: ''Poshchim Bongo'', , abbr. WB) is a state in the eastern portion of India. It is situated along the Bay of Bengal, along with a population of over 91 million inhabitants within an area of . West Bengal is the four ...
are operated by the West Bengal Transport Corporation (WBTC). It is the only operating tram network in India and the oldest operating electric tram in Asia, running since 1902. There are 257 trams in total, of which 125 used to run daily on the Kolkata streets, but now only 35 trams run daily. The single-deck articulated cars can carry 200 passengers (60 seated).
Private railways
Though state-owned companies like Indian Railways
Indian Railways (IR) is a statutory body under the ownership of Ministry of Railways, Government of India that operates India's national railway system. It manages the fourth largest national railway system in the world by size, with a tot ...
and the various metro companies enjoy a near monopoly in India, a few private railways do exist. These private railway lines are used exclusively for freight.
There are railway lines owned and operated by companies including plantations, sugar mills, collieries and other mines, dams, harbours and ports. Private railways are operated by the Mumbai Port Trust, the Chennai Port Trust, the Kolkata Port Trust, the Visakhapatnam Port Trust and the Bhilai Steel Plant.[ The Tata Group operate funicular railways at Bhira and at Bhivpuri Road (as well as the Kamshet–Shirawta Dam railway line). The Pipavav Rail Corporation holds a 33-year concession for building and operating a railway line from Pipavav to Surendranagar.][ The Kutch Railway Company, a joint venture of the Gujarat state government and private parties, is involved (alongside the Kandla Port Trust and the Gujarat Adani Port) to build the Gandhidham–Palanpur line.][
]
UNESCO World Heritage Sites and Indo-Saracenic structures
There are two UNESCO World Heritage Sites on Indian Railways, the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus and the Mountain railways of India, Mountain Railways of India. The latter consists of three separate railway lines located in different parts of India: the Darjeeling Himalayan Railway, a narrow gauge railway in Lesser Himalayas in the state of West Bengal, the Nilgiri Mountain Railway, a rack railway in the Nilgiri Hills in the state of Tamil Nadu and the Kalka–Shimla Railway, a narrow gauge railway in the Siwalik Hills in the state of Himachal Pradesh.
Future
IR's Research Design and Standards Organisation (RDSO) undertakes research, design and standardisation. The railway has undertaken several initiatives to upgrade its ageing infrastructure and improve its quality of service. The Indian government plans to invest to upgrade IR by 2020.
Infrastructure modernisation projects include High-speed rail in India, high-speed rail, with the first Ahmedabad-Mumbai train in operation for 2022; the redevelopment of 400 stations by monetizing of spare railway land under a plan;[Railways appoints IRSDC as nodal agency for station redevelopment]
, Livemint, 5 December 2017. Double-track railway, doubling tracks to reduce congestion and delays while improving safety;[ the refurbishing of 12- to 15-year-old coaches at the Carriage Rehabilitation Workshop in Bhopal to enhance passenger amenities and fire safety; use of Global Positioning System (GPS)-enabled tracking of trains to improve safety and service; Digital India-driven digitalisation of the railway to improve efficiency and reduce cost;][ Rainwater harvesting#India, rainwater harvesting, with 1885 systems installed by December 2016;][Rain Water Harvesting System In Indian Railway]
, 7 December 2016. and reforestation of railway land and along the tracks.[India Plants 50 Million Trees in One Day, Smashing World Record]
, National Geographic, July 2016.
All routes will be Central Organisation for Railway Electrification, electrified to save on imported-fuel costs.[Indian Railways orders conversion to Broad Gauge]
, Rail Digest, 12 April 2017. Off-the-grid solar-powered trains are planned with the installation of one gigawatt of Solar power, solar and 130 megawatts of wind power between 2017 and 2022; India introduced the world's first solar-powered train and 50 coaches with rooftop solar farms in June 2017.[India's new solar-powered train is the first in the world]
, June 2017 Initial assessments of this experiment have been positive. Rooftop photovoltaic power station, Rooftop solar electricity is planned at stations to reduce long-term fuel costs and protect the environment. and Sustainable lighting, Sustainable Light-emitting diode, LED lighting at all the stations was completed by March 2018 which saves Rs 500 million per annum in electricity bills. Locomotive factories have been modernised, including two new factories in Bihar: an electric locomotive factory in Madhepura and a diesel locomotive factory in Marhaura, and 2,285 bio-toilets were introduced from April to July 2014. A partnership with Alstom to supply 800 electric locomotives from 2018 to 2028 was announced.
All the unmanned level crossings were eliminated by January 2019, and manned level crossings are being progressively replaced by overbridges and underbridges.[All unmanned level crossings (UMLCs) on Broad Gauge (BG) have been eliminated on 31st Jan 2019.]
, 12 May 2016.[ Other safety projects include the extension of an automated fire alarm system, first introduced on Rajdhani Express trains in 2013, to all air-conditioned coaches;] and 6,095 GPS-enabled Inertial navigation system, Fog Pilot Assistance System railway signalling devices (replacing the practice of placing firecrackers on tracks to alert train drivers) installed in 2017 in four zones: Northern Railway zone, Northern, North Central, North Eastern Railway zone, North Eastern and North Western Railway zone, North Western; and replacing ICF coach with LHB coach.
See also
; Rail transport
* List of railway stations in India
* List of high-speed railway lines in India
* Dedicated freight corridors in India
* List of countries by rail transport network size
* Urban rail transit in India
* High-speed rail in India
; Other
* Air transport in India
* Aerial lift in India
* Bharatmala
* Expressways of India
* Indian Human Spaceflight Programme
* Transport in India
* UDAN, national airport transport connectivity scheme
* Water transport in India
Notes
References
Further reading
* Aguiar, Marian. ''Tracking Modernity: India's Railway and the Culture of Mobility'' (University of Minnesota Press; 2011) 226 pages; draws on literature, film, and other realms to explore the role of the railway in the Indian imagination
excerpt and text search
* Laura Bear, Bear, Linda. ''Lines of the Nation: Indian Railway Workers, Bureaucracy, and the Intimate Historical Self'' (2007)
excerpt and text search
* Kerr, Ian J. ''Railways in Modern India'' (2001
excerpt and text search
* Kerr, Ian J. ''Engines of Change: The Railroads That Made India'' (2006)
* Kumar, Sudhir, and Shagun Mehrotra. ''Bankruptcy to Billions: How the Indian Railways Transformed Itself'' (2009)
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External links
Indian Railways
– official website
Glossary
{{DEFAULTSORT:Rail Transport In India
Rail transport in India,