Kandahar State Railway
The Kandahar State Railway, broad gauge(BG), opened c.1881, ran only from Sibi and then as far as Rindli § see note [1]
The ‘Sind-Pishin State Railway’ had reached Sibi in 1880 [2] ‘- see separate page
The line was not constructed beyond Rindli and never reached Kandahar in Afghanistan [3].
§ Note Rindli - from Sibi the line ran south-west, skirting the hills to Rindli, and originally followed the course of the Bolān stream to its head on the plateau. The exact location of Rindli has not been determined, it is showing on the 1909 Map in the “Imperial Gazetteer” [4] as a short branch, estimated at 20 miles(32km) south west of Sibi and Bolan Junction
The ‘Kandahar State Railway’ joined with the southern section of the ‘Sind-Pishin State Railway’ and in 1886 amalgamated, with other railways, to form ‘North Western Railway’(NWR).
The destructive action of floods, however, led to the abandonment of this alignment. There is no mention of this line in the 1918 “Administration Report on Indian Railways” [5] where it would have been listed under the ‘North Western Railway - Frontier Military Section’ as a branch of the ‘Sind-Pishin Section’.
Alternative Routes
- The ‘ Bolan Pass Pörtable Railway’ reached Quetta in 1886 - see separate page. This was replaced in 1897 by the season broad gauge(BG) 'Mushkaf-Bolan Railway'.
- The ‘Sind-Pishin State Railway’ extended their line northwards from Sibi through the Harni Pass ‘- see separate page
Personnel
- Henry Francis Storey, 1880. Engineer-in-Chief of the Jacobabad section. In 1881 his services were acknowledged by the Government of India (GoI) for 'arduous exertions rendered in the transport of troops and war material during the Afghan War, 1878-80.' Appointed Engineer-in-Chief, Kandahar State Railway. In 1882 he received the thanks of the GoI “for prompt and efficient arrangements made in passing, without delay, troops proceeding to Egypt during the heavy breaches in the line caused by floods and for prompt execution of repairs for early resumption of traffic.” Promoted 1883 to Superintendent of Way and Works.
- Hugh Lewin Monk,1880 February, deployed from the Railway Branch of the Public Works Department to Kandahar State Railway until 1881.
Further information
- See Sind-Pishin State Railway
- and North Western Railway from 1886 onward
References
- ↑ "Stealth in Steel: Kandahar State Railway" by Salman Rashid March 28, 2013.; Retrieved 2 May 2016
- ↑ “Administration Report on Railways 1918” page 108, pdf 117; Retrieved 12 Nov 2020
- ↑ Google Books "Kipling and Afghanistan: A Study of the Young Author as Journalist Writing ..." by Neil K. Moran 2005 page 18; Retrieved 12 Dec 2015
- ↑ From "Imperial Gazetteer of India, v. 26, Atlas 1909 edition, Railway Map--Sectional (1), p. 23.” ; Retrieved 12 Nov 2020
- ↑ “Administration Report on Railways 1918” page 108 (pdf107) ; Retrieved 11 Nov 2020