Sealdah South lines

Sealdah South lines
Overview
System	Electrified
Status	Operational
Locale	West Bengal
Termini	Sealdah Budge Budge, Diamond Harbour, Namkhana, Canning
Operation
Owner	Indian Railway
Operator(s)	Eastern Railway
Technical
Line length	26 km (16 mi) (Sealdah-Budge Budge), 60 km (37 mi)(Sealdah-Diamond Harbour), 109 km (68 mi)(Sealdah-Namkhana), 46 km (29 mi)(Sealdah-Canning)
Track gauge	1,676 mm (5 ft 6 in) Broad gauge
Operating speed	up to 100 km per hour

Sealdah South lines

Legend to Sealdah-Ranaghat line to Bardhaman via Chord to Sealdah-Hasnabad-Bangaon-Ranaghat line 7 Dum Dum to Kolkata Metro (Kavi Subhas) Patipukur Kolkata Railway Station to Kolkata Circular Railway 4 Bidhannagar Road Sir Gurudas Banerjee Halt 0 Sealdah Main 0 Sealdah South 3 Park Circus 6 Ballygunge 7 Dhakuria 8 Jadavpur 10 Bagha Jatin 12 Kavi Subhas / New Garia Sahid Khudiram Kavi Nazrul Gitanjali Masterda Surya Sen Netaji Mahanayak Uttam Kumar 8 Lake Gardens Rabindra Sarobar 9 Tollygunge to Kolkata Metro (Dum Dum) 10 New Alipore 12 Majherhat to Kolkata Circular Railway 14 Brace Bridge 17 Santoshpur 19 Akra 23 Nungi 26 Budge Budge 13 Garia 15 Narendrapur 13 Sonarpur 20 Bidyadharpur 23 Kalikapur 24 Champahati 27 Piyali 29 Gourdaha 32 Ghutiari Sharif 39 Taldi 46 Canning 20 Subhasgram 22 Mallikpur 25 Baruipur 28 Kalyanpur 30 Dakshin Durgapur 32 Hotar 35 Dhamuah 37 Uttar Radhanagar 40 Magrahat 43 Bahitpuya Halt 45 Sangrampur 50 Deula 53 Netra 55 Basul Danga 57 Gurudas Nagar 60 Diamond Harbour 28 Shashan Road 30 Krishna Mohan 32 Dhapdhapi 34 Suryapur 36 Gocharan 39 Hogla 42 Dakshin Barasat 45 Baharu 50 Jaynagar Majilpur 54 Mathurapur Road 59 Madhabpur 62 Lakshmikantapur 68 Udairampur 72 Kulpi 77 Karanjali Halt 83 Nischindapur Market 84 Nischindapur 92 Kashinagar 95 Kakdwip Ukilerhat 109 Namkhana Source: Indian Railway Time Table

The Sealdah South lines are a set of four lines from Sealdah South station connecting Sealdah with Budge Budge, Diamond Harbour, Namkhana and Canning. It is part of the Kolkata Suburban Railway system and is under the jurisdiction of Eastern Railway.

Layout of Sealdah-South Lines

History

The 45 km long line from Calcutta to Port Canning, constructed in 1862 by the Calcutta and South-Eastern Railway, was the first railway track on the east bank of the Hooghly. It ran from what was then Beliaghata station (presently Sealdah South station) to Canning on the Matla River. Calcutta and South-Eastern Railway was formed in 1859 as a private company but was taken over by the government in 1868 after it incurred extensive losses because of floods and other problems. It was the first case in India of the railway being taken over by the state.

The Diamond Harbour link was constructed by Calcutta and South-Eastern Railway in 1883.

The Budge Budge line was constructed in 1890.

The Baruipur-Lakshikantapur line was opened in 1928. It was extended up to Namkhana in 2006.

Ganga Sagar mela

The Ganga Sagar mela, which attracts thousands of pilgrims during Makar Sankranti in mid-January, is approached through this line. Kakdwip and Namkhana stations serve as handy rail heads for travel to the mela. Eastern Railway runs around 80 special trains for the mela. There also are special trains from Delhi to Namkhana via Lucknow and Allahabad.

Future developments

There are plans for constructing a deep sea port at Sagar Island. This would also require the construction of a 4.5 km long rail-cum-road bridge to connect the island to the mainland and around 40 km long rail connection.

A project costing Rs. 1.24 billion has been sanctioned for extension of the Sealdah-Canning line to Bhangankhali, with a bridge across the Matla. There are plans to extend the line later to Gosaba.

External links

External video
Train leaving Budge Budge
Ganga Sagar pilgrims boarding ferry at Namkhana