INDIAN RAILWAY

The Indian Railways have been a great integrating force for more than 150 years. It has helped the economic life of the country and helped in accelerating the development of industry and agriculture.

From a modest beginning in 1853, when the first train steamed off from Mumbai to Thane covering a distance of 34 kms, Indian railways have grown into a vast network of 7, 031 stations spread over a route length of 63, 221 kms with a fleet of 7,817 locomotives, 5,321 passenger service vehicles, 4, 904 other coaching vehicles and 228, 170 wagons as on 31st March 2004.

Indian Railways, a historical legacy, are a vital force in our economy. The first railway on Indian sub-continent ran from Bombay to Thane on 16th April 1853. Fourteen railway carriages carried about 400 guests from Bombay to Thane covering a distance of 21 miles. Since then there has been no looking back. It is interesting to note that though the railways were introduced to facilitate the commercial interest of the British it played an important role in unifying the country.

Railways are ideally suited for long distance travel and movement of bulk commodities. Regarded better than road transport in terms of energy efficiency, land use, environment impact and safety it is always in forefront during national emergency.

Indian railways, the largest rail network in Asia and the world's second largest under one management are also credited with having a multi gauge and multi traction system.

The track kilometers in broad gauge (1676 mm) are 86, 526 kms, meter gauge (1000 mm) are 18, 529 kms and narrow gauge (762/610 mm) are 3,651 kms. Of the total route of 63,028 kms, 16,001 kms are electrified.

The railways have 7566 locomotives, 37, 840 coaching vehicles, 222, 147 freight wagons, 6853 stations, 300 yards, 2300 goodsheds, 700 repair shops, and 1.54 million work force. Indian Railways runs around 11,000 trains everyday, of which 7,000 are passenger trains.