East Indian Railway

East Indian Railway
Howrah Station, Calcutta
Line of route
Howrah (Calcutta) to Delhi Allahabad to Jubbulpore
Gauge / mileage
Broad gauge	1962 miles (1905)
Timeline
1849	Guarantee agreed with East India Company
1851	Construction begun
1854 1867 1871	First train between Howrah and Hooghly First through train to Delhi First through train to Bombay via Jubbalpore
1880	Line acquired by State
Key locations
Presidency	Bengal
Stations	Agra, Benares, Hooghly, Mirzapur, Patna
System agency
1880	worked by East Indian Railway Company
How to interpret this infobox

East Indian Railway
East Indian Railway device
System timeline
1880	EIR re-formed to work line now owned by State
1925	Management of system taken over by State
Constituent companies / lines
1880	East Indian Railway
1889	Delhi-Umballa-Kalka Railway
	South Behar Railway
1885	Tarkessur Railway
	Jind-Panipat Railway
1925	Oudh and Rohilkhand merged into EIR
Key locations
Headquarters	Calcutta
Workshops	Jamalpur, Liluah
Major Stations	Agra, Benares, Howrah, Patna
Successor system / organisation
1947	Eastern Division, Indian Railways
1952	split between Eastern & Northern Railways (IR zones)
System mileage
Broad gauge	2225 miles (1905) 4011 miles (1943)
Associated auxiliary force
East Indian Railway Regiment
How to interpret this infobox

Built on the same terms and conditions as the Great Indian Peninsula Railway (GIPR), the East Indian Railway (EIR) was a British company, registered in London, privately owned and financed, operating under license and guarantee from the (British) Board of Control in India and the East India Company (EIC).

By 1859, the arrangements were "the construction and working of lines from Calcutta to Delhi, and from Allahabad to Juppulpore - total, about 1,400 miles. Capital - 12,731,000l. This amount has been sanctioned for the works specified, but it is probable that a larger sum will be required. Rate of Interest Guaranteed - 5 per cent. on 11,553,000l. capital; 4½ per cent. on 1,178,000l. debentures, convertible into shares."

History

In January 1844 Rowland Macdonald Stephenson published an article in the leading daily paper, 'The Englishman', with his proposals, illustrated by a large map of India, showing the whole system of lines which he held to be most suitable for the country. This gained Government support and he returned to London after reinforcing his position with the merchants of Bengal. Back in England, Stephenson proposed formation of a company with the title “'East Indian Railway Company”

The East Indian Railway Company (EIR) was formed in May 1845 with a power to raise a capital of 4 million pound sterling and Stephenson was the first Agent and Chief Engineer.

After four years of protracted negotiation and strenuous efforts, including a direct appeal to the British Prime Minister, a contact was signed in August 1849 between the EIR and the EIC and became one of the three original guaranteed companies sanctioned to construct experimental lines. It was not until August 1854 that the EIR opened its first section from Howrah to Hooghly, a distance of 24 miles (38km. On 3rd February, 1855, the first portion of the line, 121 miles(194km) from Howrah) to Burdwan ( towards Delhi), was opened by Lord Dalhousie .

Formed in 1845, the EIR was not contracted by the EIC to begin railway construction until 1849 when it became one of the three original guaranteed companies sanctioned to construct experimental lines. It was not until 1854 that the EIR opened its first section from Howrah to Hooghly. By 1864, the EIR had arrived in Delhi although it was not until 1871 that the Bombay-Calcutta route was completed when the GIPR reached Juppulpore.

By 1865, with the opening of the Naini Bridge (over the Jamuna River at Naini, near Allahabad), there was a through line from Howrah (on the right bank of the Hoogly River facing Calcutta) to Agra (on the left bank of the Jamuna River facing Agra, a line length of 1017 miles(1630km)

In 1866 the Yamuna Railway Bridge (Delhi) was constructed in 1866 by the East India Railway (EIR) and connected the two principal cities of North India Calcutta and Delhi; this being the last link of the trunk line on this route.

The Government of India (GoI) acquired the assets of the EIR on 31 December 1879 while leaving the management to the private company.

In 1887 the Jubilee Bridge was completed, crossing the Hooghly River between Naihati and Hooghly. The bridge was constructed by the EIR and connected to the East Bengal Railway(EBR) enabling freight traffic from upper India to run to the Port of Calcutta .

Progressive development of the EIR network continued such that by 1918 there was over 2400 miles (3840km) of broad gauge(BG) track.

The GoI took over the direct running of the EIR on 1 January 1925.

'Indian Railways' - In 1952, the EIR was split to form two zones of Indian Railways. The Moradabad, Lucknow & Allahabad Division was subsuned into Northern Railway while the remainder was merged with the Bengal-Nagpur Railway (BNR) to form Eastern Railway. This latter merger was not considered a success as, in 1955, BNR was demerged to form South Eastern Railway.

Locomotive, Carriage & Wagon Workshops

• The first workshops to build Locomotives, Carriages and Wagons were established in Howrah and operational in the mid 1850’s.
• In 1862, the EIR Locomotive Workshops at Jamalpur were completed leaving the EIR Carriage and Wagon Workshop at Howrah.
• By 1900 the new EIR Carriage and Wagon Workshop at Lillooah (3Km up line from Howrah) was established.
• On 15 January 1934, the Jamalpur Locomotive Workshops, along with the entire railway colony, were destroyed by an earthquake. It took 3 years to rebuild the facility.

Organisation

By 1914, EIR was organised into the following departments, each with its own workshops with the main ones shown.

1. Agency
2. Audit & Accounts
3. Carriage & Wagon - Lilloah; Allahabad
4. Colliery
5. Electrical
6. Engineering
7. Locomotive - Allahabad; Asansol; Dhanbaid; Dinapore; Jamalpur; Tundla
8. Medical
9. Printing
10. Provifent Institution
11. Stores
12. Traffic - Calcutta (Head Office); Allahabad; Asansol; Cawnpore; Howrah; Howrah Goods; Delhi; Dhanbaid; Dinapore; Gaya; Sahebgunge; Tundla

Schools

The EIR operated many schools, of which probably the best known was Oak Grove School at Mussoorie. Oak Grove School is still associated with Indian Railways and Northern Railway.

EIR Railway Lines

Branch Lines and extensions

• Barun-Daltonganj Railway, opened 1902. Section of EIR line
• Bhagalpur Badli Railway, under construction 1907 for EIR
• Ondal-Sainthia Railway, opened 1908, a EIR Chord line linking the two EIR mainlines from Calcutta.
• Howrah-Burdwan Chord Railway, opened 1917. Part of EIR system
• Calcutta Chord Railway, opened 1931-32. EIR link from Dum Dum to Dankuni over Willindon Bridge
• Dildarnagar-Ghazipur-Trighat Branch Railway, opened 1880. Branch line to EIR main line.

Railways absorbed into EIR

• Delhi-Umballa-Kalka Railway, formed 1889 as private company, merged into EIR, 1925
• Deoghur Railway, opened 1882. Short branch line linking important pilgrimage centre to main line, initally own agency; merged into EIR, 1911
• Oudh and Rohilkhand Railway(O&RR), formed from Indian Branch Railway(IBR); nationalised, 1889; merged into EIR, 1925
• Patna & Gaya State Railway, opened before 1881. State line merged into EIR, c.1892
• Tarkessur Railway, opened 1884-85. Worked by EIR; Merged into EIR 1915.

Lines worked by EIR at some time

• Barharwa-Azimganj-Katwa Railway, opened c.1914. Branch/Loop line extension to Hooghly-Katwa Railway worked by EIR.
• Central Indian Coalfields Railway, opened 1927. GoI owned; part worked by Bengal Nagpur Railway(BNR); later amagamated with EIR.
• Hooghly-Katwa Railway, opened c.1914. Branch/Loop line extension to Barharwa-Azimganj-Katwa Railway worked by EIR.
• Jind-Panipat Railway, opened 1916-17. Originally worked by EIR; later by North Western Railway(NWR)
• Nalhati-Azimganj Railway, opened 1863. Originally part of Indian Branch Railway(IBR), unique 4ft gauge; worked by O&RR, 1863-72; run as State Rly, 1872; leased to EIR, 1892.
• Sheoraphuli-Tarakeshwar Railway, opened 1885. Branch line opened by the Tarkessur Railway Co.; worked by EIR.
• South Behar Railway, opened 1899. Leased to the State by South Bihar Railway Co.; worked by EIR.
• Thanesar-Kaithal Railway, opened 1909. Branch line of Delhi-Umballa-Kalka Railway; worked by EIR, 1909.
• Calcutta Port Commissioners' Railway, opened 1892 and connected to EIR in 1924

Records

Refer to FIBIS Fact File #4: “Research sources for Indian Railways, 1845-1947” - available from the Fibis shop. This Fact File contains invaluable advice on 'Researching ancestors in the UK records of Indian Railways' with particular reference to the India Office Records (IOR) held at the British Library

An on-line search of the IOR records relating to this railway gives many references. The most important being:-

• L/AG/46/11 “Records of the East Indian Railway Company; 1844-1953”
• L/AG/46/31 “Records of the India Office relating to the East Indian Railway Company; 1879-1952”

Personnel

The following employment records held at the IOR are relevant :-

• L/AG/46/11/133-137 "Contracts of appointment, c1858-1925" (possibly not all included)

The above is indexed in

• Z/L/AG/46 "Index to UK Appointments to Indian Railways (1849-1925)"
• FIBIS database List of Indian Railways UK Contracted Staff taken from IOR Series L/AG/46/12.

The following is not included in the index Z/L/AG/46.

• L/AG/46/11/138-141 : "Half-yearly staff lists, 1861-1890 & 1911-1922" (giving ages from 1886).

East Indian Railway Personnel gives details of EIR staff from several sources:-

• "Grace's Guide ” for notable personnel
• Wikipedia
• etc

FIBIS resources

• List of Indian Railways UK Contracted Staff taken from IOR Series L/AG/46/11. FIBIS database
• Index to V/13/244 East Indian Railway Staff List 1914FIBIS database
• "The Indian Railways and a dynasty of Pearce's (1855 to 1930)", FIBIS Journal, Spring 2011, Number 25 page 13-16.
• "The Walsh Family and the Cawnpore Massacre" by Paddy Walsh FIBIS Journal Number 31 (Spring 2014) pages 3-15.

William Walsh was working for the East Indian Railway as a Railway Inspector at the time of the massacre, having joined c 1856-57 after retiring as a pensioned Sergeant, Bengal Artillery.

For access, see FIBIS Journals

Recommended reading

• Blair Williams, "EIR at Jamalpur - Anglo-Indian Railway Officers", The International Journal of Anglo-Indian Studies (Vol 6, No 2, 2001).

• "The Carriage and Wagon Workshops of the East Indian Railway", The Indian Railway Gazette, 1st February 1908, page 33-35.

• "Development of the East Indian Railway", Railway Age Gazette, 1st August 1913, Vol.55, No 5, page 191-195.

• "East Indian Railway", The Railway Gazette, 1st November 1929, page 21-32 & 113-114.

Associated Auxiliary Force

• East Indian Railway Regiment

External links

• East Indian Railway logo
• Science & Society Picture Library
• "History of Eastern Railway", Indian Railways Fans Club.
• EIR Picture Gallery, Indian Railways Fans Club.
• How Railways made tracks in India September 29, 2003 thehindubusinessline.in
• Imperial Indian Mail (and other trains) trains-worldexpresses.com
• H.M. Government “Statute Law Repeals: Nineteenth Report : Draft Statute Law (Repeals) Bill; April 2012"; pages 122-126, paragraphs 3.32-3.50

Historical books online

• George Huddleston, History of the East Indian Railway (Calcutta: Thacker, Spink & Co, 1906). Archive.org. [A second part, published in 1939, took the history to 1924.]
• "The East Indian Railway", page 358 from Bengal and Assam, Behar and Orissa: their history, people, commerce and industrial resources by Somerset Playne and J W Bond 1917 Archive.org
• The Early History Of The East Indian Railway by Hena Mukherjee 1960. Pdf download, Digital Library of India

Published books

• Mukherjee, Hena. The Early History of the East Indian Railway 1845-1879. Published by Firma KLM Private Limited, Calcutta 1994.

• "Symphony of Progress: The Saga of Eastern Railway 1854-2003 published by the Eastern Railway in Kolkata 2003. website of Eastern Railway, Sealdah