INDIA: WORLD 4TH LARGEST RAILWAY NETWORK
The first commercial train journey in India between Bombay and thane on 16 April 1853 in a 14 carriage long train drawn by 3 locomotives named Sultan,Sindh and Sahib, It was around 21 miles in length and took approximately 45 minute.
In 1900, an GIPR became a government owned company.
The network spread to the modern day states of Assam,Rajasthan and Andhra Pradesh and soon various independents kingdoms began to have their own rail system.
In 1909,an early Railway Board was constituted, but the power were formally invested under Lord Curzon. It served under the Department of Commerce and Industry and had a government railway official serving as chairman, and a railway manager from England and an agent of one of the company railways as the other two members. For the first time in its history, the Railways began to make a profit.
The first electric train ran between Bombay(Victoria Terminus) and kurla, a distance of 16 kms. on February 3, 1925 along the city's harbour router.
Following independence in 1947, India inherited a decrepit rail network. About 40 per cent of the railway lines were in the newly created pakistan. Many lines had to be constructed to connect important cities such as jammu. A total of 42 separate railway systems, including 32 lines owned by the former Indian princely states existed at the time of independence spanning a total of 55,000 km. These were amalgamated into the Indian Railways.
The total track length of network is 119,640 km(74,340 mi) while the total route length of the network is 66,687 km(41,437 mi). Track section are rated for speeds ranging from 80 to 220 km/h(50 to 137 mph), though train don't really clock speeds of 200 km/h. Maximum speed attained by passenger train is 177 km/h-180 km/h(110 mph).
Around 23,555 km (14,636 mi) of the route-kilometer or 43,357 km(26,941 mi) of running track was electrified as of 31 March 2016. India uses 25 kV AC traction on all of its electrified tracks.
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