Arthur Thomas Cotton

Arthur Thomas Cotton (1803–1899)

Arthur Thomas Cotton entered the Madras Engineers in 1819 as 2nd Lieutenant and attached to the Chief Engineer to Madras and later appointed as an Assistant Engineer to Superintending Engineer of the Tank Department.

Promoted to Captain and finally to General, Sir Arthur Thomas Cotton KCSI was a noteworthy irrigation engineer. There are two very early instances he utilised railways to move materials to constuction sites.

Railway Achievements in India

• 1836 A T Cotton, then Captain, advocated the construction of a railroad in India. The Red Hill Railroad at Chintadripet was constructed opened 1837 for the conveying of granite to be used as road-building material. It was the first railway in India.
• 1845; Engineer-in-charge, Captain of the Godavari Dam Construction Railway for the construction of the Godavari Dam to transport stone and other materials from Rajahmundry.