| Sealdah–Bangaon line | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Overview | |
| Status | Operational |
| Owner | Indian Railways |
| Locale | West Bengal |
| Termini | |
| Stations | 53 |
| Website | Eastern Railway |
| Service | |
| Type | Commuter rail |
| System | Kolkata Suburban Railway |
| Services | |
| Operator(s) | Eastern Railway |
| Depot(s) |
|
| History | |
| Opened |
|
| Technical | |
| Line length | 162 km (101 mi) |
| Number of tracks |
|
| Character | At-grade |
| Track gauge | 1,676 mm (5 ft 6 in)broad gauge |
| Electrification | 25 kV overhead line |
| Operating speed | up to 100 kmph |
TheSealdah–Bangaon line is a 78 km (48 mi) longbroad gauge railway line that connects theSealdah railway station ofKolkata withBangaon ofNorth 24 Parganas in the Indian state ofWest Bengal. Once a part of the oldCalcutta–Jessore–Khulna line, today it is a busy suburban section of theKolkata Suburban Railway. It is under the jurisdiction of theSealdah railway division of theEastern Railway zone ofIndian Railways.[1][2]
The line has two branch lines. The 53 km (33 mi) longBarasat–Hasnabad branch line with 20 stations provides connectivity to much of theBasirhat subdivision of theNorth 24 Parganas district while the 28 km (17 mi) longRanaghat–Bangaon branch line with 9 stations connects this line with theRanaghat Junction on theSealdah–Ranaghat section.[1][2]
The line was a part of the old Calcutta–Jessore–Khulna line with trains such as theBarisal Express running through it. Today however it is primarily a suburban section with a total of 138 daily and 112 Sunday EMU services serving the Sealdah–Bangaon section.[3] A further 31 EMU services betweenBangaon andRanaghat junctions, and 2 EMU services, betweenBangaon andShantipur junctions, run via the Ranaghat–Bangaon branch line.[3] The Barasat–Hasnabad branch line is served by a total of 46 daily and 38 Sunday EMU services.[3] Majority of the services are provided by 9-car and 12-carEMU rakes from the Barasat EMU Carshed.[4] Few services in the Ranaghat–Bangaon line are provided by 12-car EMU rakes from the Ranaghat EMU Carshed as well.[4]
Petrapole railway station serves as a major international transit point for freight and, recently, passengers toBangladesh with theBenapole railway station serving as itsBangladeshi counterpart.[5][6] TheBenapole land port, the largest land port of Bangladesh, is directly served by this line along with the roadways at theBenapole Border Crossing and accounts for more than 90% of the imported Indian goods intoBangladesh.[7][8] Major freight commodities handled by this section are foodgrains, fuel, medical oxygen, stone and gypsum amongst others.[6]
On 9 November 2017, a bi-weekly international service fromKolkata toKhulna called theBandhan Express was started by the Indian and Bangladeshi governments.[9] The train initially had stoppages only atKolkata,Petrapole,Benapole andKhulna with Petrapole and Benapole serving as border checkpoints. However, due to popular demand a new three minute stoppage was added atJessore Junction railway station on 7 March 2019.[10]
The line has an interchange station atDum Dum Junction with theBlue Line of theKolkata Metro and theSealdah Main and North section.[11] Completion of construction and opening of theYellow Line of Kolkata Metro is expected provide four more interchange stations atDum Dum Cantonment,Madhyamgram,Hridaypur andBarasat Junction.[12][13][14]
The Bengal Central Railway company (reporting mark:BCR) was formed in 1881 to build and operate a5 ft 6 in (1,676 mm)broad gauge railway line fromSealdah toKhulna viaJessore with a branch fromBangaon toRanaghat.[15][16]
It constructed the twobroad gauge lines: one connectingRanaghat andBangaon (21 miles (34 km)) in 1882 and the other connectingDum Dum withKhulna (now in Bangladesh), viaBangaon (108 miles (174 km)) which opened in stages and was completed in 1884. These lines were merged withEastern Bengal Railway in 1904.[16]
With the takeover of BCR, the Calcutta–Bangaon–Jessore–Khulna line became the main line of the Central section of Eastern Bengal Railway (reporting mark:EBR).[17][18] The Patipukur Loop line from Dum Dum Cantonment to Patipukur was opened on 1904 as well.[17] In 1942, EBR was merged with theAssam Bengal Railway (reporting mark:ABR) to form the Bengal and Assam Railway (reporting mark:B&AR).[1]
The Barasat–Basirhat Light Railway (reporting mark:BBLR) was a 26 miles (42 km) long2 ft 6 in (762 mm)narrow gauge railway that was constructed by theMartin's Light Railways company in 1905 betweenBarasat andBasirhat. It was further extended viaTaki toHasnabad (Chingrighata) in 1909. A 16.62 miles (26.75 km) long extension was built from Beliaghata Bridge on the Barasat–Basirhat line toPatipukur in 1910. This was further extended toBelgachia in 1914 and was known as the Shyambazar Branch.[18][19]
Following the partition of India in 1947, the Calcutta–Khulna line was divided into two parts and the Petrapole railway station became the terminus on the Indian side while theBenapole railway station became the terminus in the Bangladeshi side of the line. The Calcutta (now Sealdah)–Bangaon–Petrapole section came under the jurisdiction of theSealdah division of theEastern Railway zone of theIndian Railways while theBenapole–Jessore–Khulna section came under the jurisdiction of the Eastern Bengal Railway (renamed asPakistan Eastern Railway on 1961[20]) of the thenEast Pakistan.[21]
TheBarisal Express, launched in 1884, fromCalcutta toKhulna continued post-partition until rail services between the two countries were suspended due to theIndo-Pakistani War of 1965.[21] Following the liberation of Bangladesh, freight services between the two countries were restored for a brief period of two years in 1972 but closed again due to a lack of goods.[22]India andBangladesh signed an agreement in July 2000 to resume freight services and the first freight train ran across the link on 21 January 2001.[22] TheBandhan Express, a weekly service, was introduced on this line in November 2017. It traces the old route of theBarisal Express except for having its terminus in theKolkata railway station instead ofSealdah railway station.[23]
The Barasat–Basirhat Light Railway (reporting mark:BBLR) closed down in 1955 due to continuous losses.[24] The Barasat-Hasnabad section of the BBLR was converted into a5 ft 6 in (1,676 mm)broad gauge and was built in a new alignment between 1957 and 1962 becoming the Barasat–Hasnabad branch line. The Shyambazar branch of the BBLR was abandoned.[25][26]
The Dum Dum Cantonment–Biman Bandar branch line was built by theEastern Railway and was inaugurated in July 2006. Due to losses and poor patronage owing to the location of the station and odd timings of the services, the services on the line were closed down in 2016. The line was further dismantled in 2020 to make way for theYellow Line.[27]
There are some pattern in numbering in local trains of Sealdah Bangaon section.
TheSealdah–Barasat–Bangaon section is a double line section whereas the Ranaghat–Bangaon–Petrapole–Benapole section is a single line section.[3] In the Barasat–Hasnabad branch line, the Barasat–Sondalia and Lebutala–Champapukur sections are double lined whereas the Champapukur–Hasnabad section is a single line section.[3] The doubling of the Sondalia–Lebutala section of the line is currently under progress.[28]
All the lines in the section are fully electrified with 25 kV AC overhead system. The Sealdah–Bangaon line was electrified in 1963–64, while the Barasat–Hasnabad branch line was electrified in 2002-03[29]
The lines are primarily served by 9-car and 12-carEMU rakes from the Barasat EMU Carshed.[4] Few services in the Ranaghat–Bangaon line are provided by 12-car EMU rakes from the Ranaghat EMU Carshed as well.[4]
While the section was initially served by the Narkeldanga EMU carshed which opened on 1963, due to the increasing traffic requirements in the Sealdah–Bangaon section and the electrified Barasat–Hasnabad and Ranaghat–Bangaon sections led to the commissioning of the Barasat EMU Carshed in 1990.[4] In 2018,three phaseIGBT based 12-car EMU rakes were introduced in this carshed.[4] As of January 2022, the shed contains 8 9-car EMU rakes and 25 12-car EMU rakes, 6 of which are three phaseIGBT based.[4]
Similar increase in traffic requirements in the Ranaghat–Gede,Ranaghat–Bangaon,Ranaghat–Shantipur–Krishnanagar City andRanaghat–Lalgola sections led to the commissioning of the Ranaghat EMU carshed in 2007.[4] As of January 2022, the car shed contains 15 12-car EMU rakes and 6MEMU rakes of which one is an 8-car rake while the rest are 12-car rakes. Three of the 12-car MEMU rakes are three phaseIGBT based rakes.[4]
Nowadays, 3 phase emu is running on tracks. Narkeldanga EMU Carshed has 2 nos 12Car 3phase Alstom rakes and RHA has 5 rakes and BT has 10 nos of 3 phase rakes which are in service in this line. In BNJ, 6 rakes are night stabled and other trains shed in their respective Carshed.[citation needed]
| Sealdah–Barasat–Bangaon line | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| # | Distance from Sealdah Main and North (km) | Station Name | Station Code | Connections | Station Category[30] |
| 1 | 0 | Sealdah Main and North | SDAH | Sealdah South section | NSG-1 |
| 2 | 5 | Bidhannagar Road | BNXR | – | SG-2 |
| 3 | 8 | Dum Dum Junction | DDJ | Sealdah–Ranaghat–Gede line /Calcutta Chord link line /Kolkata Metro Blue Line (Dum Dum metro station) | SG-2 |
| 4 | 11 | Dum Dum Cantonment | DDC | – | SG-3 |
| 5 | 13 | Durganagar | DGNR | – | SG-3 |
| 6 | 14 | Birati | BBT | – | SG-3 |
| 7 | 16 | Bisharpara Kodaliya | BRPK | – | SG-3 |
| 8 | 17 | New Barrackpur | NBE | – | SG-3 |
| 9 | 19 | Madhyamgram | MMG | Kolkata Metro Yellow Line (Madhyamgram metro station) | SG-2 |
| 10 | 21 | Hridaypur | HHR | Kolkata Metro Yellow Line (Hridaypur metro station) | SG-3 |
| 11 | 23 | Barasat Junction | BT | Barasat–Hasnabad branch line /Kolkata Metro Yellow Line (Barasat metro station) | SG-2 |
| 12 | 27 | Bamangachhi | BMG | – | SG-3 |
| 13 | 31 | Dattapukur | DTK | – | SG-3 |
| 14 | 35 | Bira | BIRA | – | SG-3 |
| 15 | 38 | Guma | GUMA | – | SG-3 |
| 16 | 42 | Ashoknagar Road | ASKR | – | SG-3 |
| 17 | 45 | Habra | HB | – | SG-2 |
| 18 | 50 | Sanhati | SNHT | – | HG-3 |
| 19 | 55 | Machhalandapur | MSL | – | SG-3 |
| 20 | 58 | Gobardanga | GBG | – | SG-3 |
| 21 | 64 | Thakurnagar | TKNR | – | SG-3 |
| 22 | 68 | Chandpara | CDP | – | SG-3 |
| 23 | 73 | Bibhutibhusan Halt | BNAA | – | HG-3 |
| 24 | 77 | Bangaon Junction | BNJ | Ranaghat–Bangaon branch line | SG-3 |
| ↑↓ International passenger or freight traffic only | |||||
| 25 | 82 | Petrapole | PTPL | Petrapole Land Port | HG-3 |
| Barasat–Hasnabad branch line | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| # | Distance from Barasat Junction (km) | Station Name | Station Code | Connections | Station Category[31] |
| 1 | 0 | Barasat Junction | BT | Sealdah–Barasat–Bangaon line /Kolkata Metro Yellow Line (Barasat metro station) | SG-2 |
| 2 | 3 | Kazipara | KZPR | – | HG-3 |
| 3 | 6 | Karea Kadambagachi | KBGH | – | HG-3 |
| 4 | 10 | Bahira Kalibari | BHKA | – | HG-3 |
| 5 | 12 | Sondalia | SXC | – | SG-3 |
| 6 | 15 | Beliaghata Road | BGRD | – | HG-3 |
| 7 | 18 | Lebutala | LBTL | – | HG-3 |
| 8 | 20 | Bhasila | BSLA | – | SG-3 |
| 9 | 23 | Harua Road | HRO | – | SG-3 |
| 10 | 27 | Kankra Mirzanagar | KMZA | – | HG-3 |
| 11 | 31 | Malatipur | MPE | – | SG-3 |
| 12 | 33 | Ghora Ras Ghona | GGV | – | HG-3 |
| 13 | 36 | Champapukur | CQR | – | SG-3 |
| 14 | 41 | Bhyabla | BBLA | – | HG-3 |
| 15 | 42 | Basirhat | BSHT | – | SG-3 |
| 16 | 45 | Matania Anantapur | MNAP | – | HG-3 |
| 17 | 47 | Madhyampur | MPN | – | HG-3 |
| 18 | 48 | Nimdanri | NMDR | – | HG-3 |
| 19 | 51 | Taki Road | TKF | – | SG-3 |
| 20 | 53 | Hasnabad | HNB | – | SG-3 |
| Ranaghat–Bangaon branch line | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| # | Distance from Ranaghat Junction (km) | Station Name | Station Code | Connections | Station Category[31] |
| 1 | 0 | Ranaghat Junction | BT | Sealdah–Ranaghat–Gede line /Ranaghat–Krishnanagar City–Lalgola line | SG-2 |
| 2 | 3 | Coopers Halt | CPHT | – | HG-3 |
| 3 | 5 | Naba Raynagar | NBRN | – | HG-3 |
| 4 | 10 | Gangnapur | GGP | – | SG-3 |
| 5 | 15 | Majhergram | MAJ | – | SG-3 |
| 6 | 18 | Akaipur Halt | AKIP | – | HG-3 |
| 7 | 18 | Gopalnagar | GN | – | SG-3 |
| 8 | 23 | Satberia Halt | STBB | – | HG-3 |
| 9 | 28 | Bangaon Junction | BNJ | Sealdah–Bangaon branch line | SG-3 |
| ↑↓ International passenger or freight traffic only | |||||
| 10 | 32 | Petrapole | PTPL | Petrapole Land Port | HG-3 |
The Machhalandapur–Swarupnagar, Bira–Chakla,Bangaon–Chandabazar–Bagdah,Bangaon–Poramaheshtala andHasnabad–Hingalganj new lines were sanctioned in the railway budgets between 2009 and 2012 under the tenure ofMamata Banerjee as therailway minister. None of the projects however could be started because of non-availability of land and hence the work has been kept under abeyance by the Railway Board.[32][33][34]
The name and the setting of the Bengali socialdrama film,8:08 Er Bongaon Local is based on the daily suburban EMU local which leaves theSealdah station forBangaon Junction at 8:08 a.m.IST.[35][36]
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