Barauni–Guwahati line | |
---|---|
Overview | |
Status | Operational |
Locale | Bihar, Assam |
Termini |
Barauni Guwahati Junction |
Operation | |
Opened | 1950 |
Owner | Indian Railway |
Operator(s) | Northeast Frontier Railway |
Technical | |
Line length | 804 km (500 mi) |
Track gauge | 1,676 mm (5 ft 6 in) Broad gauge |
The Barauni–Guwahati Railway line connects Barauni Junction in the Indian state of Bihar and Guwahati Junction in Assam. It is a linkage of prime importance for Northeastern India.
The earliest railway tracks in Assam were laid in the Dibrugarh area in 1882 for the transportation of tea and coal. The first passenger railway was also in that area.
Linking Guwahati was the challenge. In response to the demands of tea planters in Assam for a rail link to Chittagong port, the Assam Bengal Railway started construction of a railway track on the eastern side of Bengal in 1891. A 150 km (93 mi) track between Chittagong and Comilla was opened to traffic in 1895. The Comilla–Akhaura–Kalaura–Badarpur section was opened in 1896–1898 and finally extended to Lumding in 1903. The Assam Bengal Railway constructed a branch line to Guwahati, connecting the city to the eastern line in 1900.
During the period 1884–1889, Assam Behar State Railway linked Parbatipur, now in Bangladesh, with Katihar in Bihar. North Bengal State Railway had opened a metre gauge line from Parbatipur and the line subsequently got extended beyond the Teesta, and through Geetaldaha to Golokganj in Assam. During the 1900–1910 period, the Eastern Bengal Railway built the Golakganj–Amingaon branch line, thus connecting the western bank of the Brahmaputra to Bihar and the rest of India. Katihar got linked to Barauni around the turn of the century.