Nepal Railway Company Ltd. | |
Native Name: | नेपाल रेल्वे कम्पनी |
Trade Name: | Nepal Railway |
Type: | Government sector |
Industry: | Rail transport |
Predecessor: | Nepal Government Railway and Nepal Janakpur–Jainagar Railway |
Successors: | --> |
Founded: | 1927 |
Founder: | Chandra Shumsher |
Hq Location City: | Janakpur |
Hq Location Country: | Nepal |
Area Served: | Nepal |
Key People: | Redeyes (Director General) Niranjan Jha (CEO of Nepal Railway Company Limited) |
Owner: | Government of Nepal |
Parent: | Department of Railways |
The Nepal Railway Company Ltd. (in short Nepal Railway), reporting mark: NRW / ने. रे) is a state-owned company under Department of Railways (DORW) which operates passenger train services in Nepal. It is the only train service provider in the country. [1] Currently it operates passenger transport service on the 52km (32miles) line from Jainagar, India to Bhangaha, Nepal. It is sort of equivalent to the Sajha Yatayat for road transportation.
Before consolidating to current stage, train service was started as Nepal Government Railway (NGR) then continued as Nepal Janakpur Jaynagar Railway (NJJR). NGR era was entirely coal era with steam engines whereas NJJR got dieselized in 1993.Today's Nepal Railway is the revived form of Nepal Janakpur Jaynagar Railway (NJJR).
Currently Nepal Railway operates passenger train service on Jaynagar–Bardibas railway line. It has plan to operate freight service on Bathnaha–Biratnagar railway line soon. Passengers have two choices of cars, deluxe and general to ride on Nepal Railway's trains. As per General Manager of Nepal Railways Niranjan Jha, 1350 passengers can travel by train at one time.
In August 2012, a serious incident occurred when a locomotive ran away without bogies while a driver was putting in oil. The locomotive ran from Jainagar to Janakpur at speeds far exceeding the restrictions on the line, resulting in the normally two-and-a-half hours journey of 29km (18miles) taking only 45 minutes. The staff at Janakpur diverted the locomotive engine onto a damaged track where its wheels became stuck in the ground and it came to a full stop without causing any injuries.[2] [3]