Satpura narrow gauge lines

Satpura narrow gauge lines
Overview
System	Steam/ diesel
Status	Partly operational
Locale	Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra
Operation
Owner	Indian Railway
Operator(s)	South East Central Railway
Technical
Track gauge	2 ft 6 in (762 mm); 1,676 mm (5 ft 6 in)

The Satpura narrow gauge lines consist of just over 1,000 km of a network of 2 ft 6 in (762 mm) narrow gauge lines in central India. Some parts of it have been converted to 1,676 mm (5 ft 6 in) and the rest is still functional as narrow gauge line.

History

The Satpura narrow gauge lines, developed by the Bengal Nagpur Railway, connected Jabalpur with Gondia, Mandla Fort, Chhindwara and Nagpur.^[1] Nainpur was the focal point of the network and was even bestowed with the prestige of being a divisional headquarters for some time.^[1]^[2] The lines came up in the early years of the 20th century. The first portion of the Gondia-Nainpur line was opened on 13 April 1903, Nainpur and Chhindwara were connected in 1904 and Jabalpur in 1905. The Chhindwara-Pench Coalfield line came up in 1906-07 and the Nainpur-Mandla Fort link in 1909.^[3]^[4] The extensive network of 2 ft 6 in (762 mm) gauge tracks measured just over 1,000 km.^[2]^[5]

Gauge conversion

Conversion of the narrow gauge line to 1,676 mm (5 ft 6 in) is an approved project.^[3]

The gauge conversion programme includes the 147 km Nagpur-Chhindwara line, the 141 km Chhindwara-Nainpur line, the 110 km Jabalpur-Nainpur line, the 76 km Nainpur-Balaghat line and the 42 km (26 mi) Nainpur-Mandla Fort line.^[6]

Jabalpur-Nainpur gauge conversion has been completed in 43.4 km patch from Jabalpur to Sukrimangla but the narrow gauge track has not been dismantled and narrow gauge trains still run on this section. The remaining 70.1 km patch from Sukrimangla to Nainpur may be converted in 2014 if the required land is made available in Seoni district.

On Nagpur-Chhindwara route, work for a 750 metre tunnel between Chhindwara and Saunsar patch is in progress.

Satpura Express

The Satpura Express was a showpiece of these narrow gauge lines. It used to travel the 228 km distance between Jabalpur and Gondia in eight hours.^[2] With part of the line having been converted to 1,676 mm (5 ft 6 in), it now runs 187 km from Jabalpur to Balaghat in a little less than seven hours.^[7]

References

↑ 1.0 1.1 R.R.Bhandari. "Railways of the Raj". Retrieved 2012-12-10.
↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 Vohra, Bharat. "Satpura NG Explorer". IRFCA. Retrieved 2012-12-10.
↑ 3.0 3.1 "Nagpur Division". South East Central Railway. Retrieved 2012-11-10.
↑ "Major Events in the Formation of S.E. Railway". South Eastern Railway. Retrieved 2012-11-10.
↑ "India's Satpura Narrow Gauge Lines, 1981". The International Steam Pages. Retrieved 2012-12-10.
↑ "Funds crunch hits gauge conversion work". The Times of India, 27 April 2012. Retrieved 2012-12-10.
↑ "Satpura Express". India Rail Info. Retrieved 2012-12-10.

External links

External video
Madla-Nainpur Narrow Gauge Passenger Train

Railways in Central India

National network/ trunk lines	Howrah–Allahabad–Mumbai line Howrah–Nagpur–Mumbai line Delhi–Chennai line

Branch lines/ sections	Bina–Katni rail route Satpura narrow gauge lines Tatanagar–Bilaspur section Bilaspur–Nagpur section Nagpur–Bhusawal section Allahabad–Jabalpur section Jabalpur–Bhusaval section Agra–Bhopal section Bhopal–Nagpur section Nagpur–Hyderabad line Narkhed-Amravati Railway

Monorail	Indore Monorail

Defunct lines revived//under revival	Nagpur Chattisgarh Railway

Defunct lines	Rajputana-Malwa Railway

Named trains	Ahilyanagari Express Amarkantak Express Avantika Express Azad Hind Express Bhopal Bharat Teerth Express Bhopal Jan Shatabdi Express Bhopal Janata Express Bhopal Rajya rani Express Bhopal Shatabdi Express Bhopal – Indore Intercity Express Bhopal – Indore Passenger Bhopal – Jabalpur Express Bhopal – Jabalpur Intercity Express Bhopal – Lucknow Garibrath Express Bhopal – Mumbai Express Bhopal – Ujjain Passenger Bhopal–Bilaspur Express Bhopal–Bina passenger train Bhopal-Gwalior Intercity Express Bhopal–Howrah Express Bhopal–Indore AC Double Decker Intercity Express Bhopal–Indore AC Double Decker Non-Stop Express Bhopal-Jaipur Express Bhopal–Jodhpur Bhopal-Lucknow Express Bhopal-Lucknow-Pratapgarh Express Bhopal-Pratapgarh Express Bina - Katni 505 Passenger Coimbatore Express Chambal Express Chhattisgarh Express Chhindwara - Amritsar Chhattisgarh Express Chitrakoot Express Damoh–Kota Passenger Dayodaya Express Durgavati Express Gondwana Express Grand Trunk Express Gwalior–Chhindwara Express Hazrat Nizamuddin – Indore Express Hazrat Nizamuddin – Jabalpur Express Hazrat Nizamuddin–Bhopal Express Hazrat Nizamuddin–Gwalior Express Himsagar Express Indore–Jaipur Express via Ajmer Indore Express Indore - Bangalore Express Indore - Bhopal AC Double Decker Intercity Express Indore – Bhopal Intercity Express Indore - Bhopal Passenger Indore–Bandra Express Indore - Rewa Intercity Express Indore Express Indore Tri Shatabdi Indore – Dehradun Express Indore – Hazrat Nizamuddin Express Indore – Maksi Passenger Indore – Nagda Passenger Indore – Nagpur Express Indore – Patna Express Indore – Rajendra Nagar Via. Faizabad Express Indore – Ujjain Passenger Indore–Ajmer Express Indore–Ajmer Link Express Indore–Amritsar Express Indore–Bandra Express Indore–Bhind Express Indore - Rewa Intercity Express Indore–Bhopal Non-Stop Express Indore–Chennai Express Indore–Gwalior Intercity Express Indore–Jabalpur Express Indore–Jabalpur Intercity Express Indore–Jaipur Express Indore–Kota Intercity Express Indore–Pune Express Indore–Rewa Express Indore–Surat Express Indore–Udaipur City Express Intercity Express – Agra Jabalpur - Indore Intercity Express Jabalpur – Ambikapur Express Jabalpur – Mumbai Central Garib Rath Special Express Jabalpur – Mumbai Garibrath Express Jabalpur–Amravati Express Jabalpur–Bhopal Express Via. Bina Jabalpur–Bhopal Intercity Express Jabalpur–Bhopal Jan Shatabdi Express Jabalpur–Indore Express Jabalpur–Jammu Tawi Express Jabalpur–Nagpur Express Jabalpur–New Delhi Express Jabalpur–Rewa Intercity Express Jabalpur–Somnath Express Jaipur Superfast Express Lashkar Express Madhya Pradesh Sampark Kranti Mahakoshal Express Mahanadi Express Malwa Express Meenakshi Express Mumbai–Indore Duronto Nagpur – Indore Tri Shatabdi Express Narmada Express Panchvalley Express Patalkot Express Rajendra Nagar Bihar – Indore Express Ranthambore Express Rewa – Delhi Anand Vihar Express Rewanchal Express Sarguja Express Satpura Express Shaan-e-Bhopal Express Shaktipunj Express Shanti Express Shipra Express Shramik express Surat Bhagalpur Express Surat–Muzaffarpur Express Taj Express Tapti Ganga Express Trivandrum–Indore Express Udhna Varanasi Express Ujjaini Express Vindhyachal Express

Railway companies	Bengal Nagpur Railway Great Indian Peninsula Railway South East Central Railway Central Railway Western Railway West Central Railway

See also	Indian Railways Bholu (mascot) Datia rail accident Akola–Ratlam (metre gauge trains) Indore–Ajmer metre-gauge trains Rail transport in Madhya Pradesh Dalli-Rajhara–Jagdalpur rail line