Southern Mahratta Railway

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Southern Mahratta Railway
[[Image:|150px| ]]
Line of route
Hotgi to Guntakal
Guntakal to Bezwada
Gadag to Poona
Bellary to Rayadrug (branch)
Gauge / mileage
Metre gauge 1042 miles (1905)
Timeline
1884 First sections opened to traffic
Key locations
Presidency Madras, Bombay
Stations
System agency
1882 Worked by Southern Mahratta Railway
1907 Madras and Southern Mahratta Railway
How to interpret this infobox
Southern Mahratta Railway
[[Image:|150px| ]]
System timeline
1882 Contracted to work Mysore State Railway
1907 Merged with Madras Railway
Constituent companies / lines
1882 Southern Mahratta Railway
1899 Birur-Shimoga Railway
Guntakal-Mysore Frontier Railway
Hindupur-Yesvantpur Railway
Hospet-Kottur Railway
Kolhapur State Railway
1891 Mysore-Nanjangud Railway
1882 Mysore State Railway
1902 West of India Portuguese Railway
Key locations
Headquarters
Workshops
Major Stations
Successor system / organisation
1907 Madras and Southern Mahratta Railway
System mileage
Metre gauge 1687 miles (1905)
Associated auxiliary force
Southern Mahratta Railway Rifle Corps
How to interpret this infobox

The Southern Mahratta Railway (SMR) was also variously called the Southern Maratha Railway and the Southern Maharastra Railway.


History

The SMR was founded in 1882 to construct a metre gauge railway between Hotgi and Gadag (opened to traffic in 1884), one of the "famine lines" set up with a guarantee. In the same year (1882), it was contracted by the Indian State of Mysore to work the several metre gauge lines that the Mysore State had built or was in the course of construction.

In 1888, a line was extended from Londa towards the Portuguese colony of Goa where it connected with the Marmagao line. (From 1902 this line was leased as the West of India Portuguese Railway.) By 1890, this line extended from Londa eastwards via Guntakal to Bezwada, and northwards to Poona, turning the SMR from an assortment of branches to a real railway network.

In 1908, the SMR merged with the Madras Railway to form the Madras and Southern Mahratta Railway.


Records

Unfortunately, there are no SMR Staff agreements held at the British Library in the India Office Records.


External links

Frederick Dibblee, MICE, briefly Superintending Engineer, SMR (1882).