India Railways

India railways play an essential role for the people of this country, a transportation system with a long history.  In fact, the first railway system built was developed from an idea coming from the Bombay government’s Chief Engineer back in 1843.  When finished in 1853, the railway was 21 miles long, going from Bombay to Thane.  Designed to accommodate 14 carriages, the new railway system could accommodate 400 people.

India railways play an essential role for the people of this country, a transportation system with a long history.  In fact, the first railway system built was developed from an idea coming from the Bombay government’s Chief Engineer back in 1843.  When finished in 1853, the railway was 21 miles long, going from Bombay to Thane.  Designed to accommodate 14 carriages, the new railway system could accommodate 400 people.

Then in the summer of 1854, the first passenger train was in service, stretching 24 miles.  With the, the Eastern side of the subcontinent railway system in India was born.  Two years later, the first railway line was launched in the south region of the country, running 63 miles from Veyasarpandy and Walajah Road.  Then in 1859, a much longer railway was built, running 119 miles going from Allahabad to Kanpur.  Then in 1875, the first section going from Hathras Road to Mathura Cantonment was opened to the public.

Although substantial developments for the time, these early India railways were merely steps to what was to come.  In fact, by 1880, India had a network of railways that covered approximately 9,000 miles.  Today, a number of different railways exist all over India but the one considered the premier choice for transport and the largest is Indian Railways.  This multi-traction and multi-gauge system has proven to be a vital component of the country’s economy.

Indian Railways now has about 11,000 trains running on a daily basis, which means 7,000 people are moved from one location to another every day!  Without doubt, Indian Railways has been vital to this country but officials also understand for it to continue providing the high level of service needed, more projects need to be completed, customers need a better support system, and General Managers need to have their workload lightened.  One of the major changes coming is that Indian Railway will create seven new zones and adjust zones already in use.  These new zones will be designed to be more cost-efficient and customer effective.

India’s government believes the seven new zones created by India Railways will eliminate ongoing problems associated with bottlenecking.  Other improvements expected with the completion of these new zones includes express, long-distance mail, and freight trains running a greater speeds, port connectivity and multi-modal corridors would be developed and strengthened, and four mega bridges would be completed for various rivers.

Considering that today, some 13 million people use the India Railways system, it is imperative that improvements be made to enhance security.  While officials have made several changes over the years, now with improved technology and more workers, the railway system can be updated to meet current standards.  All changes planned will take about six years to complete, which includes replacing old tracks, distressed bridges, signal systems, and a variety of other devices used for safety purposes.  However, one of the most impressive changes will be used by Konkan Railway, which is an Anti-Collision Device or ACD that uses new technology to lower the potential for train collisions.

India Railways will also implement a computer-based ticketing system.  Since approximately 12 million of the 13 million people that use the railway system do not have ticket reservations, this new system is critical.  The advantage is having the ability to issue unreserved tickets from several locations besides the actual train boarding system.  The result will be lower crowds waiting to purchase tickets and more efficiency.  The additional changes being executed for India Railways includes the following:

•    Freight Operations Information System (FOIS) – Computerized system for freight operations by using the Rake Management System or RMS
 
•    National Train Enquiry System – Provides upgraded passengers with information and allows enquiries to be run using several output devices and the Interactive Voice Response System (IVRS)

•    Intra-Net Railnet – Provides the capability of networking going between Training Centers, the Railway Board, Zonal  Headquarters, Production Units, Divisional Headquarters, and more

•    Indian Railways Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) Internet-Based Ticketing – With this, people in several countries will have the ability to make ticket purchases online