East Bengal Railway
 |
|
| Industry | Railways |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1857 |
| Defunct | 1942 |
| Headquarters | Calcutta, British India |
|
Area served
|
Bengal and Assam |
| Services | Rail transport |
The Eastern Bengal Railway (full name Eastern Bengal Railway Company, shortened EBR) was one of the pioneering railway companies that operated from 1857 to 1942, in Bengal and Assam provinces of British India.
The Eastern Bengal Railway Company was established with the objective of introduction of railway transport in eastern Bengal and even to move into Burma. The company was incorporated by United Kingdom Act of Parliament in August 1857. The operational area of Eastern Bengal Railway was to be the east bank of the Hooghly River, while East Indian Railway Company operated on the west bank of the river.
The EBR was taken over by the Government of India in 1884 and renamed the Eastern Bengal State Railway. The Calcutta and South Eastern Railway was merged into it in 1887. In 1915, it reverted to its old name Eastern Bengal Railway. In 1941, the Bengal Dooars Railway was merged into Eastern Bengal Railway. In 1942, the Government of India merged Assam Bengal Railway with Eastern Bengal Railway to create Bengal and Assam Railway.
After the partition of India in 1947 the broad-gauge portion of the Bengal and Assam Railway, lying in India was added to the East Indian Railway and the metre-gauge portion became the Assam Railway.
On 14 April 1952, Assam Railway and the Oudh and Tirhut Railway were amalgamated to form the North Eastern Railway. On the same day, the reorganized Sealdah division of the erstwhile Bengal Assam Railway (which was added to the East Indian Railway earlier) was amalgamated with the Eastern Railway.
With the formation of the Northeast Frontier Railway on 15 January 1958, the portions of the erstwhile Eastern Bengal Railway that were in Assam and the Indian portion of North Bengal, came under its jurisdiction.
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