Great Indian Peninsular Railway
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| Industry | Railways |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1 August 1849 |
| Defunct | 5 November 1951 |
| Headquarters | Bombay, British India |
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Area served
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British India |
| Services | Rail transport |
The Great Indian Peninsula Railway was a predecessor of the Central Railway, whose headquarters was at the Boree Bunder in Mumbai (later, the Victoria Terminus and presently the Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus). The Great Indian Peninsula Railway was incorporated on August 1, 1849 by an act of the British Parliament. It had a share capital of 50,000 pounds. On August 17, 1849 it entered into a formal contract with the East India Company for the construction and operation of an experimental line, 56 km long, to form part of a trunk line connecting Bombay with Khandesh and Berar and generally with the other presidencies of India. The Court of Directors of the East India Company appointed James John Berkeley as Chief Resident Engineer and C. B. Kar and R. W. Graham as his assistants. It was India's ever first railway, the original 21 mile (33.8 km) section opening in 1853, between Bombay (Mumbai) and Tannah (Thane). On July 1, 1925 its management was taken over by the Government. On November 5, 1951 it was incorporated into the Central Railway.
Incorporated as a company in 1845, with its head office in London, the Great Indian Peninsula railway was initially proposed for a length of 1300 miles, to connect Bombay with the interior of the Indian peninsula and to a major port on the east coast. It was meant for the purpose of increasing the export of cotton, silk, opium, sugar and spices. The management committee consisted of 25 British men, including officials of the East India company and banks in London, most of whom resided in Britain and some who had resided in India. The original 25 person board consisted of: people such as John Stuart Wortley and W.J Hamilton (both M.P.s from Britain who became the company's chairman and Deputy chairman), Frederick Ayrton (ex-East India Company), Cavalrymen such as Major Clayton and Major-General Briggs, Bombay residents John Graham and Col. Dickenson, bankers such as John Harvey (Commercial Bank of London) and S. Jervis (Director of the London and County Bank, Lombard Street), and Directors of other railway companies such as Richard Paterson (Chairman of the Northern and Eastern Railway Company) and Melvil Wilson (Director of the Alliance Assurance Office).
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