The Indian Railways system is the largest in Asia and third in the world after U.S., and Canada, it is the biggest employer in the world and largest public sector undertaking in India and it has the second biggest electrified system in the world after Russia . On April 16, 1853 first train in India was opened between Bombay and Thana covering a distance of 34 km. Shatabdi Express is the latest super-fast train introduced in the Indian Railways. Deccan Queen is the first Electric train introduced in 1929. Life Line Express or Jeevan Rekha is the world’s first hospital on wheels opened in Mumbai on 16th July 1991 to cater the medical needs of people in rural areas. For every financial year Railway Budget is presented by the Union Railway Minister in the Parliament.
Rail Tracks : Type Distance between rails
(a) Metre Gauge 1.00 metre
(b) Broad Gauge 1.69 metre
(c) Narrow Gauge 0.77 metres
Railway Zones :
1. Central Railway-Nov. 05, 1958- Mumbai
2. Eastern Railway- Aug. 01, 1955 -Kolkata
3. Northern Railway- April 14, 1952- New Delhi
4. North-Eastern Railway -April 14, 1952 -Gorakpur
5. North-East Frontier- Jan. 15, 1958 -Maligaon, Guwahati
6. Southern Railway- April 14, 1951- Chennai
7. South-Central- Oct. 02, 1966 -Secunderabad
8. South-Eastern -Aug. 01, 1955 -Kolkata
9. Western Railway -Nov. 05, 1955 -Mumbai (Church Gate)
10. East-Coast Railway -Aug. 08, 1996- Bhubaneshwar
11. North-Central Railway- Aug. 28, 1996 -Allahabad
12. East-Central Railway- Sep. 08, 1996 -Hajipur
13. North-Western Railway-Oct. 10, 1996 -Jaipur
14. South-Western Railway-Nov. 01, 1996- Bangalore
15. West-Central Railway -Dec. 12, 1996 -Jabalpur
16. South-East Central Rly.- Sep. 09, 1998- Bilaspur
Railway Manufacturing Units :
1950 Chittaranjan Locomotive Works - Chittaranjan - Locomotives
1955 Integral Coach Factory - Perambur- Coaches
1964 Diesel Locomotive Works- Varanasi -Locomotives
1983 Wheel & Axle Plant Diesel Component Works - Yelahanka Patiala- Wheels & axes Components of diesel engines
1988 Rail CoachFactory -Kapurthala -Coaches, wagons & spl. containers