Rail transport

Rail transport is a means of conveyance of passengers and goods, by way of wheeled vehicles running on rails.

It is also commonly referred to as train transport. In contrast to road transport, where vehicles run on a prepared flat surface, rail vehicles are also directionally guided by the tracks on which they run. Track usually consists of steel rails, installed on ties (sleepers) and ballast, on which the rolling stock, usually fitted with metal wheels, moves. Other variations are also possible, such as slab track where the rails are fastened to a concrete foundation resting on a prepared subsurface.

Rolling stock in railway transport systems generally has lower frictional resistance when compared with highway vehicles and the passenger and freight cars (carriages and wagons) can be coupled into longer trains. The operation is carried out by a railway company, providing transport between train stations or freight customer facilities. Power is provided by locomotives which either draw electric power from a railway electrification system or produce their own power, usually by diesel engines. Most tracks are accompanied by a signalling system. Railways are a safe land transport system when compared to other forms of transport. Railway transport is capable of high levels of passenger and cargo utilization and energy efficiency, but is often less flexible and more capital-intensive than highway transport is, when lower traffic levels are considered.

New Delhi

New Delhi (ⁱ/ˌnjuː ˈdɛli/) is a municipality and district in Delhi which serves as the capital and seat of government of India. In addition, it also serves as the seat of Government of Delhi.

The foundation stone of the city was laid by George V, Emperor of India during the Delhi Durbar of 1911. It was designed by British architects, Sir Edwin Lutyens and Sir Herbert Baker. The new capital was inaugurated on 13 February 1931, by India's Viceroy Lord Irwin.

Although colloquially Delhi and New Delhi as names are used interchangeably to refer to the jurisdiction of NCT of Delhi, these are two distinct entities, and the latter is a small part of the former.

New Delhi has been selected as one of the hundred Indian cities to be developed as a smart city under PM Narendra Modi's flagship Smart Cities Mission.

Establishment

Calcutta (now Kolkata) was the capital of India during the British Raj until December 1911. However, Delhi had served as the political and financial centre of several empires of ancient India and the Delhi Sultanate, most notably of the Mughal Empire from 1649 to 1857. During the early 1900s, a proposal was made to the British administration to shift the capital of the British Indian Empire (as it was officially called) from Calcutta to Delhi. Unlike Calcutta, which was located on the eastern coast of India, Delhi was at the center of northern India and the Government of British India felt that it would be logistically easier to administer India from the latter rather than the former.

Train station

A train station, railway station, railroad station, or depot (see below) is a railway facility where trains regularly stop to load or unload passengers or freight.

It generally consists of at least one track-side platform and a station building (depot) providing such ancillary services as ticket sales and waiting rooms. If a station is on a single-track line, it often has a passing loop to facilitate traffic movements. The smallest stations are most often referred to as "stops" or, in some parts of the world, as "halts" (flag stops).

Stations may be at ground level, underground, or elevated. Connections may be available to intersecting rail lines or other transport modes such as buses, trams or other rapid transit systems.

Terminology

In the United States, the most common term in contemporary usage is train station. Railway station and railroad station are less frequent; also, American usage makes a distinction between the terms railroad and railway.

In Britain and other Commonwealth countries, traditional usage favours railway station or simply station, even though train station, which is often perceived as an Americanism, is now about as common as railway station in writing; railroad station is not used, railroad being obsolete there. In British usage, the word station is commonly understood to mean a railway station unless otherwise qualified.

New Delhi railway station

The New Delhi Railway Station (station code NDLS), situated between Ajmeri Gate and Paharganj is the main railway station in Delhi. New Delhi railway station is the busiest and largest railway station in India. It handles over 350 trains and 500,000 passengers daily with 16 platforms. The New Delhi railway station holds the record for the largest route interlocking system in the world along with the Kanpur Central Railway Station i.e. 48. The station is about two kilometres north of Connaught Place, in central Delhi.

Most eastbound and southbound trains originate at New Delhi Railway Station. However, some important trains to other parts of the country also touch/originate at this station.

History

Before the new imperial capital New Delhi was established after 1911, the Old Delhi Railway Station served the entire city and the Agra-Delhi railway line cut through what is today called Lutyens' Delhi and the site earmarked for the hexagonal All-India War Memorial (now India Gate) and Kingsway (now Rajpath). The railway line was shifted along Yamuna river and opened in 1924 to make way for the new capital. Minto (now Shivaji) and Hardinge (now Tilak) rail bridges came up for this realigned line. The East Indian Railway Company, that overlooked railways in the region, sanctioned the construction of a single story building and a single platform between Ajmeri Gate and Paharganj in 1926. This was later known as New Delhi Railway station. The government's plans to have the new station built inside the Central Park of Connaught Place was rejected by the Railways as it found the idea impractical. In 1927–28, New Delhi Capital Works project involving construction of 4.79 miles (7.71 km) of new lines was completed. The Viceroy and royals entered the city through the new railway station during the inauguration of New Delhi in 1931. New structures were added to the railway station later and the original building served as the parcel office for many years.