Poradaha Branch Railway
The Poradaha Branch Railway was a broad gauge(BG) line, constructed c.1880 by the Northern Bengal State Railway(NBSR) but worked by East Bengal Railway (EBR). The line linked Poradaha on the EBR mainline via the Sara Train Ferry to the NBSR line from Sara Ghat running northwards.
The EBR had extended the BG line from Poradaha eastwards to the steamer terminus at Goalundo on the right bank of the River Ganges (+see note+) [1]. This line proved so profitable to the EBR that its directors rejected any proposal for a northward extension towards Siliguri and onward to Darjeeling [2].
Thus it was left to the state-owned Northern Bengal Railway (NBR) to lay a track of 13 miles(21km) from Poradaha to Damukdiya on the right bank of the River Ganges (+see note+) (13 miles) [2]. The EBR worked this section known as the Poradaha Branch Railwayas a part of its BG network.
At Damukdiya the Sara Train Ferry, operated by EBR, crossed to Sara Ghat on the left bank to connect to the Northern Bengal State Railway(NBSR) metre gauge(MG) line to Siliguri, a length of 197 miles/315km) [2]. At Siliguri , in the foothills of the Himilayas, there was a connection with the Darjeeling-Himalayan Railway (which opened 1879-81). This enabled direct access from Calcutta to Darjeeling.
In 1887 the NBSR was amalgamated into EBR. The BG section from Poradaha to Damukdiya becoming the EBR ‘Poradah Branch Line’ and the MG section as part of the EBR MG network from Sara Ghat northwards to Santahar and Parbatipur.
In 1915 the Hardinge Bridge was opened thus eliminating the Sara Train Ferry.
+ Note. Ganges River - The river between the west side of Bangladesh and its confluence with the Jamuna was previously called the Ganges, and is now referred to as the Padma. The Ganga is an alternative name.
Further Information
References
- ↑ [http://dsal.uchicago.edu/reference/gazetteer/pager.html?objectid=DS405.1.I34_V07_282.gif Imperial Gazetteer of India, v. 7, p. 276]; Retrieved 4 Dec 2016
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 “ Indian Railways website” Indian Railways: Darjeeling Himalayan Railways (DHR)” ; Retrieved 4 Dec 2016
