Bengal Provincial Railway Explained

Bengal Provincial Railway was a narrow-gauge railway from Tarakeswar to Magra, in Indian state of West Bengal.^[1]

History

The Bengal Provincial Railway opened by Bengali engineer Annadaprasad Roy in 1895^{[2] [3]} from Tarakeswar on the East Indian Railway to Magra, which was on the East Indian Railway broad gauge. Built by local interests, the line was 32miles long, until extended a further 2miles to Tribeni in 1904.^[4] The railway mostly used small locomotives.^[5] There also was a branch line from Dashghora to Jamalpur.

Rolling stock

In 1936, the company owned three locomotives, 31 coaches and 69 goods wagons.^[6]

Classification

It was labeled as a Class III railway according to Indian Railway Classification System of 1926.^{[7] [8]}

Closure

Increasing losses post World War 2 led to its closure in 1956.^[9]

Notes and References

1. Web site: Bengal Provincial Railway Co. vs Gopi Mohan Singh on 9 July, 1913 . 2024-03-11 . indiankanoon.org.
2. Web site: অন্নদাপ্রসাদের ১৮৯৪ সালের প্রাইভেট রেল আজ বিস্মৃতপ্রায় . 2024-03-11 . bartamanpatrika.com . en.
3. Book: Chatterjee, Arup K. . The Great Indian Railways: A Cultural Biography . 2019-01-25 . Bloomsbury Publishing . 978-93-88414-23-4 . en.
4. Web site: ভারতে প্রথম রেলযাত্রা সূচনার গৌরব বঙ্গদেশেরই হতে পারত . 2024-03-11 . Eisamay . bn.
5. Web site: The Chronology of Railway development in Eastern India . 2024-03-11 . www.irfca.org.
6. Book: World Survey of Foreign Railways . 1936 . Transportation Division, Bureau of foreign and domestic commerce, Washington D.C.. English . 224.
7. Web site: Indian Railway Classification . 10 November 2022. en.
8. Book: World Survey of Foreign Railways . 1936 . Transportation Division, Bureau of foreign and domestic commerce, Washington D.C.. English . 223–226d.
9. Hughes, Hugh 1994 Indian Locomotives Pt. 3, Narrow Gauge 1863–1940. Continental Railway Circle.