Guwahati railway station explained


Type:Regional Rail & Commuter Rail Station
Style:Indian Railways
Address:Station Road, Gopinath Bordoloi Road, Paltan Bazaar, Guwahati-781001, Assam
Elevation:56.22m (184.45feet)[1]
Line:
Other: Cabs, ASTC Bus Terminal,Auto, E-rickshaw
Structure:Standard (on ground station)
Platform:7
Tracks:14
Parking: Available
Bicycle: Available
Electrified:Yes (October 2021)
Accessible: Yes
Owned:Indian Railways
Operator:Northeast Frontier Railways
Status:Functioning
Former:Assam Bengal Railway
Passengers:80K/Day
Pass Year:30M/Year
Map Type:Guwahati#India Assam
Map Dot Label:Guwahati railway station
Mapframe:yes
Mapframe-Caption:Interactive map

Guwahati Railway Station (Station code: GHY) is located in the heart of the city of Guwahati, Assam. It is the first fully solar-operated railway station in India. It has been rated as A1-category station. Just behind the Guwahati Railway Station is the Assam State Transport Corporation Bus Terminal.

An ISO-certified railway station, Guwahati Railway Station has been ranked 21 in cleanliness among the A1-category railway stations in India.[2]

To reduce the traffic on the Guwahati junction, there is another railway station in the city at Maligaon, the Kamakhya railway station. Almost all newly introduced trains run from the Kamakhya Jn. railway station only. There were plans to make a new railway station at Beltola (in the southern part of Guwahati) to introduce trains towards Shillong, Meghalaya. Plans have not been finalized and are still in progress.

Guwahati railway station claimed to have become the first railway station to run entirely on solar power.[3] The solar panel installation project was commissioned in April 2017,[4] but an on-the-spot assessment by G Plus in February 2023 revealed that the solar power generated by the railway station covered only 15 per cent of its power requirements.[5]

In recent years the railway station has received a 100 feet-high tricolour.[6] It is the tallest tricolour among any railway station in northeast India.[7]

Services for rolling stock

The station has a diesel locomotive shed with room for 80 locomotives. The sheds accommodate WDM-3D, WDG-4D, WDG-4 and WDS class locomotives. The shed now also accommodates WDP-4D locomotives. The station has a coach maintenance complex.

Station facilities

The station is the divisional headquarters for the Northeast Frontier Railway. It became the first ever Railway station in the Indian Railways to get an ISO certification from the National Green Tribunal for "providing passenger amenities in a clean and green environment".[8]

The station has seven platforms. It serves the long-distance trains of NFR.Google along with RailWire provided Free high speed Wifi until 2020.[9] However, RailTel (RailWire's parent company) has confirmed that it will continue to provide free Wifi Internet services.[10]

The following services are available at Guwahati Railway Station:

Major trains

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Railway Stations in Guwahati. September 30, 2014. www.travelkhana.com. Travelkhana.
  2. News: November 19, 2019. Guwahati Railway Station Ranked 21 Among A1 Category Stations in India. Gplus. Guwahati.
  3. News: Smriti . Jain . Guwahati railway station is the first in North-East to run completely on solar power! Beautiful pics . 4 February 2021 . The Financial Express . Financial Express . 14 May 2018.
  4. News: May 15, 2018. Guwahati Railway Station to completely run on Solar Power. Guwahati.
  5. News: Dark Side Of Guwahati Railway Station’s 100% Solar Power Claim . Gplus . Chanda . Rahul . 6 February 2023 . 17 June 2023 .
  6. News: 100 ft high Tricolour at Guwahati Railway station . 4 February 2021 . Business Standard India . Business Standard . 16 January 2019.
  7. News: Guwahati Railway station gets tallest flag in NE Railway stations . 4 February 2021 . Pratidin Time . Pratidin . 16 January 2019.
  8. News: Guwahati Railway Station first to get ISO certification in India . 4 February 2021 . G Plus . GPlus . 3 April 2019 . en.
  9. News: February 21, 2020. Google ends its free WiFi service at Indian railway stations. The Hindu. New Delhi.
  10. News: February 18, 2020. RailTel to continue free WiFi service at railway stations after Google will stop Project Station. Livemint.