Howrah–Kharagpur line (including Tamluk-Digha & Tamluk-Haldia branch lines)
EMU train running on Howrah–Kharagpur line
Overview
Status	Operational
Owner	Indian Railways
Locale	West Bengal
Termini	Howrah Kharagpur
Service
Services	Howrah–Nagpur–Mumbai line and Howrah–Chennai main line, Kolkata Suburban Railway
Operator(s)	South Eastern Railway
Depot(s)	Tikiapara, Santragachi, Panskura, Kharagpur
History
Opened	1900
Technical
Track length	Main line: 115 km (71 mi) Branch lines: Mecheda–Haldia: 81 km (50 mi) Tamluk–Digha: 94 km (58 mi)
Number of tracks	3 (Howrah–Panskura), 3 (Panskura–Kharagpur), 2 (Panskura–Rajgoda)
Track gauge	5 ft 6 in (1,676 mm) broad gauge
Electrification	Main line: 25 kV AC overhead system in 1967–69
Operating speed	Main line: up to 160 km/h
Route map km Asansol–Tatanagar– Kharagpur line Kharagpur–Puri line Kharagpur–Bankura– Adra line Kalaikunda Kharagpur–Bankura –Adra line Nimpura Nimpura Through Yard Nimpura Goods Yard Girimaidan Hijli Kharagpur-Puri line 0 Kharagpur NH 60 7 Jakpur 13 Madpur 19 Shyam Chak 24 Balichak 27 Duan 30 Radhamohanpur 35 Haur 39 Khirai km Kangsabati River 44 Panskura Raghunathbari 20 to Ghatal (planned) Rajgoda 28 48 Narayan Pakuria Murail Saheed Matangini 33 51 Bhogpur Tamluk 36 00 54 Nandaigajan Nandakumar 10 57 Mecheda Nandakumar-Balaipanda new line (planned) 43 Keshabpur Chak Simulia 49 Satish Samanta Halt Bargoda 51 Mahishadal Moyna 60 Barda Balaipanda 66 Basulya Sutahata NH 41 Haldia Energy Power Station Haldi River 71 Durgachak Lavan Satyagrah Smarak 21 HPCL Siding Deshapran 33 Indorama Checmicals Siding Deshapran-Kendamari new line (planned) Gholpukur 74 Durgachak Town New Krishnanagar 77 Silpaprabesh Hampigram Haldia Industrial Belt Nandigram Kendamari Henria 39 Haldia Dock Complex Nachinda 52 Kanthi 63 79 Bandar ICF Haldia Sitalpur 69 81 Haldia Sujalpur 71 Ashapurna Devi 76 Kolaghat Thermal Power Station Badalpur 78 60 Kolaghat Kanthi-Egra new line (planned) Rupnarayan River Raipur 64 Deulti Satmile 67 Ghoraghata Paschimbatya 70 Bagnan Balighai Bagnan–Amta line (planned) Egra Damodar River Bhatda 78 Kulgachia Dubda 79 Bir Shibpur Paniparul Road Pujali–Uluberia line (planned) Depal 83 Uluberia Champa River 85 Phuleswar Ramnagar (Bengal) 86 88 Chengel Egra-Digha new line (planned) Fort Gloster Jute Mill Tikra 88 91 Bauria Digha–Jaleswar line (planned) 95 Nalpur Digha 94 Ambuja Cement 97 Abada Sankrail Goods yard 99 Sankrail Delta Jute Mill 103 Andul 105 Mourigram Santragachi–Amta branch line Hindustan Industries and Engineering 108 Santragachi Padmapukur NH 12 (Kona Expressway) Guest Keen Williams 109 Ramrajatala 111 Dasnagar Shalimar │ Shalimar rail yard 112 Tikiapara Howrah–Bardhaman main line & Howrah–Bardhaman chord 115 Howrah km Sources:[1][2][3][4]

The Howrah–Kharagpur line is part of the Howrah–Nagpur–Mumbai line, Howrah–Chennai main line and Kolkata Suburban Railway.

Geography

The line runs through the plains of West Bengal. From Howrah, it is first the Gangetic Plains and then the basins of the Damodar, Rupnarayan and Kangsabati, thereby traversing Howrah, Purba Medinipur and Paschim Medinipur districts.^[5][6]

Kolaghat Thermal Power Station, with its six tall chimneys, one for each of the 210 MW units, is a landmark on this line.^[7]

Haldia dock complex handled 31.015 million tonnes of traffic in 2011–12.^[8] Haldia Refinery, one of the eight operating refineries of Indian Oil Corporation, was commissioned in 1975.^[9] Haldia Petrochemicals, a modern naphtha based petrochemical complex and the second-largest project of its kind in India, has been a catalyst for the development of a large number of downstream industries.^[10]

History

Bengal Nagpur Railway opened to traffic its main line from Nagpur to Asansol in 1891. Sini, on the Nagpur–Asansol line, was connected to Kharagpur and Kolaghat in 1898–99. The Kharagpur-Cuttack section was also opened the same year. The Kolaghat-Howrah track was completed in 1899–1900. Kharagpur was connected to Howrah with the opening of the Rupnarayan bridge on 19 April 1900.^[11]

The Panskura–Durgachak line was opened in 1968, at a time when Haldia Port was being constructed. It was subsequently extended to Haldia. Haldia Dock Complex, a part of Kolkata Port Trust, was commissioned in 1977.^[11][12]

The Tamluk–Digha line was opened in 2004.^[13]

New lines

Indian Railways propose to lay a new line connecting Sealdah and Haldia, with the distance being shorter by 70  km than the Howrah–Haldia track.^[15]

There is a plan to connect Digha to Jaleswar on the Kharagpur–Puri line.^[16]

The Howrah–Kharagpur stretch has three lines.^[17] There is a plan to build a fourth line for the Santragachi–Panskura–Kharagpur stretch.^[16]

Car and loco sheds

There are EMU car sheds at Tikiapara (for Howrah), Panskura and Kharagpur. Kharagpur has a diesel loco shed which houses WDM-2, WDM-3A and WDM-3B locos. Nimpura (for Kharagpur) has an electric loco shed. Santragachi has an electric loco shed and also an outstation trip shed. It houses WAP-4 and WAP-7 locos and can take in 50+ locos. Santragachi also has arrangements for rake maintenance. Kharagpur has workshops for loco, carriage and wagon overhaul.^[18]

Speed limits

The main line is classified as a "Group A" line which can take speeds up to 160 km/h. The branch lines have speed limits within 100 km/h.^[19]

Railway reorganization

The Bengal Nagpur Railway was nationalized in 1944.^[11]Eastern Railway was formed on 14 April 1952 with the portion of East Indian Railway Company east of Mughalsarai and the Bengal Nagpur Railway.^[20] In 1955, South Eastern Railway was carved out of Eastern Railway. It comprised lines mostly operated by BNR earlier.^[20][21] Amongst the new zones started in April 2003 were East Coast Railway and South East Central Railway. Both these railways were carved out of South Eastern Railway.^[20]

Passenger movement

Howrah and Kharagpur on this line, are amongst the top hundred booking stations of Indian Railway.^[22]

References

External links

• Trains at Howrah
• Trains at Panskura
• Trains at Kharagpur

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