Interesting Facts about Indian Railways

When you talk about the culture of a country, it is impossible to ignore its transport system. In India, railway is not just a mode of commute. It is a culture in itself. With the second most population in the world, India is surely dependent on its railways to travel the length and breadth of the country. Being a developing country, not everyone can afford to travel in personal vehicles or airplanes. Railways are the most convenient mode of transportation owing to its less cost, speed, affordable Food on Train and safety. People of all economic backgrounds travel on train because the Indian railway system is designed in a way to cater to all kinds of people.

Here are some interesting facts about the Indian railways that you might not know

  • The Vivek Express which travels from Dibrugarh to Kanyakumari Covers a distance of 4,273 km, which makes it the longest-running with respect to total time and distance covered. While the shortest route is in between Nagpur and Ajni which is just 3km.
  • Before 1909, trains in India did not have toilets for the lower classes. After a person by name Okhil Babu wrote a letter to the railways explaining the problems he faced because of the absence of toilets, they were introduced to the lower classes too. In 1891, they were introduced only in the first class compartments.
  • The longest station name is Venkatanarasimharajuvaripeta Situated on the Arakkonam-Renigunta section close to Chennai in Tamil Nadu. The shortest station names are two, Ib which is near Jharsuguda in Odisha and Od located near Anand in Gujarat.
  • The country’s oldest working locomotive is the Fairy Queen which was manufactured in 1855. Fairy Queen is also the oldest functioning steam engine on earth.
  • Indian railways covers a total distance everyday which is equal to three and half times the distance to moon. This is covered by a total of 14,300 trains.
  • The first train in India was between Bombay and Thane. It started operation on the 16th of April 1853.
  • Indian railways covers more than 65,436 track route in kilometers.
  • The number of employs in Indian railways is 1.307 million people.
  • There are 7,172 railway stations in India.
  • More than 23 million passengers travel on train every day. Freight of weight 3 million tonnes is also transported through train every single day.
  • The longest railway platform in the world is located at Gorakhpur. It is 4,483 ft. in length.
  • The longest railway bridge in India is the Nehru Setu on Sone River.
  • The history of Indian railway can be seen at the National Rail Museum at New Delhi. It was built in 1977.
  • The first underground railway was built in Kolkata. It belongs to the Calcutta METRO.
  • The first computerized reservation system was started in 1986 in New Delhi.
  • The busiest Railway Station in India is the Lucknow station which welcomes 64 trains every day.
  • Indian Railway’s Fastest Train is the Bhopal-Shatabdi which runs at a speed of 140 Km/ph.
  • The train with the maximum number of stops is the Howrah-Amritsar Express. It halts at 115 stops.

These are some of the interesting facts about Indian railways.

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