Indian Railways has one of the largest and busiest railway networks in the world. It operates both long-distance and suburban train systems. The Railways is divided into 18 zones, and zones are divides into sub-divisions. It is the fourth-largest national railway network in the world. Indian Railways carried 8.44 billion passengers and transported 1.23 billion tonnes of freight in the fiscal year March 2019. Indian Railways runs 13,523 passenger trains daily, on both long-distance and suburban routes, covering 7,321 railway stations in India. Have a look at these best railway stations in India.
15 Best Railway Stations in India
Among India’s best railway stations, the cleanest railway station is Jaipur Railway Station, the highest railway station is Ghum Railway Station, world heritage railway station is Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus and the most beautiful railway station in India is Dudhsagar Railway Station.
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Top Busiest Railway Stations of India:
1. New Delhi Railway Station (NDLS)
New Delhi railway station isthe busiest railway station in India in terms of passenger movement and train frequency. It is situated between Ajmeri Gate and Paharganj. It is the main railway station in Delhi. The New Delhi railway station holds the record for having the largest route interlocking system in the world. Around 400 trains pass through the railway station every day, which handles more than 500,000 passengers daily on 16 platforms.
2. Deen Dayal Upadhyay Junction (DDU)
Pt. Deen Dayal Upadhyay Junction is the fourth busiest railway station in India. It is located in the town of Mughalsarai, Uttar Pradesh. The Mughasarai station contains the largest railway marshalling yard in Asia. Mughalsarai Railway Division has the largest wagon repair workshop of Indian Railways.
3. Busiest Railway Station: Vijayawada Railway Station (BZA)
Vijayawada Railway Station is the busiest railway stations in South India. Vijayawada is the only railway station to have five entrance gates for passengers. The Railway Station was built in 1888. The station serves about 1.40 lakh passengers, over 180 express and 150 freight trains daily.
Also Read: Top 10 Popular Trains in India
4. Busiest Railway Station: Sealdah Railway Station (SDAH)
Sealdah Railway Station is the suburban rail terminals of Kolkata and one of the busiest railway stations in India. It is one of the five major railway stations serving Kolkata in West Bengal.
5. Highest Railway Station: Ghum Railway Station (GHUM)
Ghum railway station in Darjeeling is the highest railway station in India and the 14th highest in the world. It is located at an altitude of 2,258 metres above sea level. Ghum station is one of the top 5 highest mountain railway stations of India. It is quite a small station, but it is also considered to be one of the most beautiful railway stations in India.
6. Largest Railway Station: Howrah Junction Station (HWH)
Howrah junction railway station is the largest as well as busiest railway station in India. It is located near the Hooghly River in Kolkata. The Howrah railway station has the highest train-handling capacity of about 600 passengers trains daily. It has 23 platforms that serve more than one million passengers per day. It was built in 1854, and it is the oldest railway station in India.
7. Longest Railway Station: Gorakhpur Railway Station (GKP)
Gorakhpur railway station is located in Gorakhpur, Uttar Pradesh. It has the world’s longest railway platform and serves as the headquarters of the North Eastern Railway. The Gorakhpur station offers A-1 Class railway station facilities. Gorakhpur station is amongst the top hundred booking stations of Indian Railways and Gorakhpur serves ten local railway stations.
8. Railway Station with the Longest Name: Chennai Central Railway Station (MAS)
Chennai Central Railway station is also known as Puratchi Thalaivar Dr M.G. Ramachandran Central Railway Station. It is located in Chennai, Tamil Nadu,having the longest name among all stations on the Indian Railway system. It is a 143-year-old station and was designed by architect Henry Irwin. It is also one of the oldest railway stations in India.
9. Railway Station with the Shortest Name: Ib Railway Station (IB)
Ib is a railway station located in the state of Odisha. It holds the record of having the shortest name among all stations on the Indian Railways. It falls under the south-east central railway zone. The railway station derives its name from the nearby Ib River.
10. UNESCO World Heritage Railway Station: Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus (CSTM)
Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus is a historic station and UNESCO World Heritage site in Mumbai, Maharashtra. The Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus was built in 1887 and was formerly known as Victoria Terminus Station. It is one of the busiest railway stations in India.
11. Scenic Railway Station: Dudhsagar Railway Station (DWF)
Dudhsagar Station is situated on the border of Goa and Karnataka near the beautiful Dudhsagar waterfall. Deciduous forests surround the area of Dudhsagar Railway Station and Castle rock railway station. Dudh Sagar Water Falls railway station is a small railway station in South Goa district. The station has only one platform and it is not well maintained. It lacks many facilities, such as water and sanitation.
12. Cleanest Railway Station: Jaipur Junction Railway Station (JP)
The Jaipur station has topped the list of cleanest railway stations as per Swachh Rail, Swachh Bharat 2019 by scoring 931.75 out of 1000.
Jaipur station is the headquarters of the North Western Railway zone of the Indian Railways. It is well connected by train with most of the Indian cities. The most famous luxury train “Palace on Wheels” also stops in Jaipur. The newly constructed Jaipur Metro is also connected to Jaipur Junction Railway Station. Jaipur railway station is 5 km far from City wall of Jaipur.
Also Read: Most Luxurious Train in the World
13. Visually-challenged Friendly Station: Mysore Railway Station (MYS)
Mysore Junction Railway Station is set to become the first visually challenged friendly station in the country with many facilities. The platform numbers will be written in Braille on the railings of the staircases, adding the menu cards at the canteen and the time-table of trains will be made available in Braille.
Mysuru railway station is a railway station on Mysore-Bangalore railway line serving the city of Mysore, Karnataka, India. Mysore was connected to Bangalore by double line electrified broad gauge.
14. Most Beautiful Railway Station: Jaisalmer Railway Station (JSM)
Jaisalmer station is the most beautiful railway station located in Jaisalmer, Rajasthan. The railway station falls under the North Western Railway (NWR) of Indian Railways. It is the home of India’s most luxurious trains. The railway station has 3 platforms and a total of 5 tracks. Jodhpur-Jaisalmer Railway was merged with the Western Railway in November 1951. Later, North Western Railway came into existence on 1 October 2002.
15. Biggest Railway Station: Kanyakumari Railway Station (CAPE)
Kanyakumari Railway Station is the biggest railway station in the district of Kanyakumari. It is the part of Thiruvananthapuram railway division. The southernmost railway station is the last railway station in South India. Two of the longest trains such as Dibrugarh–Kanyakumari Vivek Express and Himsagar Express, depart from here. The Kanyakumari railway station is only 1 kilometre away from Kanyakumari beach. It is located in the heart of Kanyakumari.
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Interesting Features of Indian Railways
- Railways provide a necessary service to the public. It is a public utility service provider that requires protection and investments by the government.
- The railways require big investments for the purchase of land, constructing railway stations, sheds, and laying of tracks, buying automobiles, and more. A single person can’t afford to make all these investments.
- Railway services are non-transferable because once the railway lines are laid down, then these tracks cannot be used for any other purpose.
- The railways fix separate charges for passengers and goods services. The same rates apply to all people and locations of the country. Railway services are available to all the public on equal terms.
- Indian Railways is the world’s eighth-largest employer, with more than 1.2 million employees as of March 2019.
Also Read: Facts of Indian Railways
Check the train schedule of the upcoming trains running through these railway stations to help you plan your journey well in advance.