Innovations Through the Years: India MRT System

Connecting the Country Through India MRT System

The India MRT System, or mass rapid transport system, has come a long way since it first served the public. The government has been spending money on this public service to make sure that people all over the country connect with each other. As they say, they are just a train ride away. It gives the community a sense of relief knowing that they can be with anyone by just hopping on a train. Let us discuss the India MRT system and how it progressed through the years.

A Brief History of the India Railway System

Indian history recorded the first-ever train ride more than a century ago, or back in April 1853. It traversed through Bori Bunder (Bombay) and Thane with a distance of 34 kilometres. Three locomotives—Sahib, Sultan, and Sindh—operated the train, which had 13 carriages. The India MRT system engineers decided to build a train track over the Bore Ghat a few years later. The train linkage was constructed over a nine-year period. The 2,000-feet tall train track connects Bombay to Poona with tunnels and reverses viaducts.

In 1862, the India MRT system took a major step in establishing the first railway workshop. It is located at Jamalpur, which is near Munger, Bihar. Gradually, this area became a major industrial unit in the country, with iron and steel foundries and rolling mills, among others.

The government built North Indian’s first-ever station, Delhi junction, in 1864. Today, it is still considered a major station and junction in the country. This station is established near Chandni Chowk; trains from Howrah or Kolkata began operations around the same time.

Lucknow station, meanwhile, was introduced in 1867, which is currently part of the Northern Railway. This station connects passengers to Kanpur.

These are just some of the early stories about the India MRT system. As time passes by, technology has improved as well. The popularity of railways as a transportation mode has grown through the years in India, that it now infuses technology. This is to assure that the public commuters are served well. Besides, the government has made further investments in developing the infrastructure of the India MRT system.

Railway Stations

In India, there are major stations located across the primary cities. Let us study each of them.

New Delhi

The major railway stations in India’s capital city—a major part of the India MRT system—include New Delhi Railway Station, Old Delhi Railway Station, and Hazrat Nizamuddin Railway Station.

New Delhi Railway Station. Located in Bhavbhuti Marg, Kamla Market, Ajmeri Gate, New Delhi, this station has 16 platforms and 18 tracks. It is the biggest and busiest train station in India because it has an average of 360,000 passengers every day. It is over 300 railway lines, and it connects to many cities, making it the terminal for passengers who are eastbound and southbound.
Old Delhi Railway Station. This is the Delhi Junction, the oldest railway station in the country. It sits next to the New Delhi Railway Station. This station is among the most significant transportation hubs in the city.
Hazrat Nizamuddin Railway Station. This station is one of the four main railway stations in Delhi, serving passengers who are boarding to the southern part of the country. It is adjacent to the famous tourist attraction Humayun Tomb.

Mumbai

The major railway stations in this city include the following:

Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus. This 18-platform train station is located in Dr Dadabhai Naoroji Road, Mumbai. Formerly called Victoria Terminus, its first-ever train journey was in 1853. It is among the most well-kept stations with modern facilities such as women-only waiting lounges, restaurants, and shops.
Mumbai Central Railway Station. Located in Mumbai Central, this station has nine platforms and nine tracks. It is also a major intercity station in Mumbai. It usually serves long-distance trains handled by Western Railways. Trains traverse through Punjab, Gujarat, Rajasthan, and Delhi in this station.
Dadar Railway Station. This train station—situated in Khodadad Cir, Dadar East, Dadar, Mumbai—has seven platforms and ten tracks. It is divided into Dadar Central Railway Station and Dadar Western Railway Station.

Kolkata

In the third-largest city of the country, the India MRT system has many stations, including:

Howrah Railway Station. This station is located in Station Road, Avikar India Private Limited, Howrah. It has 23 platforms and 25 tracks. It is the second oldest station in the country, which opened in 1854. This station connects Kolkata and Howrah to other cities in West Bengal. It has two terminals as well.
Sealdah Railway Station. This 20-platform railway station has 20 tracks. Located in Bepin Behari Ganguly Street, Raja Bazar, Kolkata, the station is among the country’s major and busiest stations. It has three terminals: main terminal, south terminal, and north terminal.
Kolkata Railway Station. Situated in Raicharan Sadhukhan Road, Kolkata, this train station houses five platforms and five tracks. This connects Kolkota to other cities in the country. Also, it serves suburban trains to Kolkata Airport and international trains to Bangladesh.

Bangalore

The information technology hub of the country has the following major railway stations:

Bangalore City Railway Station. The 10-platform train station is in Gubbi Thotadappa Road. This is the city’s biggest station as it provides services to most of the lines connecting Bangalore to other cities. Passengers find it easy to locate this station because it is connected to metro and city buses as well.
Bangalore Cantonment Railway Station. Situated in Station Road, Vasanth Nagar, this train station has three platforms. This was put in place to reduce the heavy traffic in Bangalore City Railway Station.
Yesvantpur Junction Railway Station. Located in Tumkur Road, Yeshwanthpur, this six-platform train station is among the busiest as well. This serves routes leading to major cities in India, including Mumbai, Delhi, Jaipur, Pune, and Chennai.

Interesting Facts About India Railway System

The old train stations used a luggage weighing machine that could carry up to 250 kilograms.
The first National Rail Museum was built at Chanakyapuri, New Delhi, in 1977. Currently, there are now 33 museums, heritage parks, and galleries across the country.
There is a mountain railway in the India MRT system. It was opened in 1899.
India used one of the oldest working steam engines on the globe.

Future of Rail Transport in India

The government has been giving focus on the India MRT system given the demand for Transport in India. In fact, the Railway Ministry said that the National Rail Plan drafted by national transporter Indian Railways to improve the country’s transport infrastructure.

The plan aims to boost the India MRT system’s passenger capacity by 2030 as demand is seen increasing even more. This way, the demand for transportation will be met until 2050. The Indian railway’s modal share is also seen to climb to 45 per cent by 2030 from 27 per cent to minimize carbon emission—a major dedication to help the environment.

In addition, Indian Railways also proposed to have three dedicated freight corridors: East-west corridor, East Coast corridor, and North-South corridor.

Future of Rail Transport in India

In addition, Indian Railways also proposed to have three dedicated freight corridors: East-west corridor, East Coast corridor, and North-South corridor.

Further Innovation

Transportation is a major pillar in a country. It allows people and goods to mobilize within the vicinity, which is important for business activities in general. And the India MRT system shows that enhancing transportation can really go a long way. The government is not even finished yet with its initiatives of making the service even better for the public.

Indeed, an accessible transportation mode allows the people to move freely, especially for India, which has a big population.

India MRT System