Karachi-Kotri (Indus River) Railway
The Karachi-Kotri (Indus River) Railway opened in 1861 linking Karachi to Kotri on the Indus River. The broad gauge(BG) line was constructed primarily to reduce the journey time on the final stage of long haul from Britain to Delhi and Calcutta. Once the Karachi-Kotri railway was completed the Indus Flotilla Company steamers could take cargo from Kotri instead of Karachi and it saved them approx 250km of circuitous journey through Indus River delta. [1]
In 1855 the Scinde Railway Company was formed in London and contracted by the East India Company to build the 108 miles (173km) Karachi-Kotri Railway Line; the line opened in stages and was completed in May 1861.
Records
An on-line search of the India Office Records (IOR) records held at the British Library relating to this railway [2] gives the following:-
- Z/E/4/25/I53; “Indus River, Railway line to be constructed from Karachi to a point on.”; 1854-55
- Z/E/4/25/R766; “Rivers, Indus, Railway line to be constructed from Karachi to a point on.”; 1854-55
Further Information
See Scinde Railway
References
- ↑ All Things Pakistan “Karachi to Kotri - The first railways in Pakistan” by Owais Mughal, Posted on September 17, 2009; Retrieved on 8 Apr 2016
- ↑ “British Library Archives and Manuscripts Catalogue” - Search; Retrieved 8 Apr 2016
