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Eastern Railway recently celebrated the station’s 162-year legacy with grand festivities at Sealdah. (Photo: The Bengal)
The Sealdah division commemorated 162 years of train service, which began on September 29, 1862, between Sealdah and Ranaghat railway stations.
On September 29, 1862, a train service from the heart of Kolkata to Ranaghat in Nadia commenced the journey of the Calcutta Railway Station, which has since developed into Sealdah Station, the busiest station in India.
On September 29, Eastern Railway celebrated the 162-year-old history and inauguration of Sealdah Station. Celebrations were organised at Sealdah Station to mark the event, where an Electric Multiple Unit (EMU) travelling from Sealdah to Ranaghat was decorated, and schoolchildren performed various acts.
One of the first transit connections in Bengal, the Ranaghat train, opened the door to a broader network that now serves as a lifeline for thousands of commuters every day from districts and other regions of the nation.
According to reports, a special service was run on the same 73-kilometre stretch between Kolkata and Ranaghat to celebrate the inaugural ride. During the colonial era, this section was eventually used as a long-distance route from Siliguri to Dhaka. Regular services were available at that time to Khulna, Barisal, Amnura and Chittagong, which were then part of undivided India.
“The commemorative 162nd year of the inaugural train service on the ‘Calcutta (Sealdah)-Ranaghat’ section is part of the Swachh Bharat cultural festival,” said Deepak Nigam, Divisional Railway Manager (DRM), Sealdah, as quoted by The Times of India.
“A photo exhibition will be held at the terminal stations of the section, Sealdah and Ranaghat, to mark the 162 years of service,” Nigam added.
With the theme “Swacchata Hi Sewa,” Nigam noted that the festival will be held at each of the following stations — Sealdah, Barrackpore, Kanchrapara, Naihat and Ranaghat. Eastern Bengal Railway (EBR) schedules were featured among the vintage black-and-white photographs from the bygone era of railways.
The city’s connection to North 24 Parganas and Nadia, the Sealdah-Ranaghat line, quickly developed into a bustling suburban area and a crucial segment of the Calcutta-Siliguri mainline. Currently, the fully electrified stretch can handle mail and express trains at speeds of up to 110 km/h and EMU trains at a top speed of 100 km/h.
