Rajshahi railway station

Rajshahi Railway Station

রাজশাহী রেলওয়ে স্টেশন
Entrance of Rajshahi Railway Station
General information
LocationRajshahi
Bangladesh
Coordinates24°22′29″N 88°36′17″E / 24.374719°N 88.604780°E / 24.374719; 88.604780
Owned byBangladesh Railway
Operated byBangladesh Railway
Line(s)Old Malda–Abdulpur line
PlatformsDouble island platforms
Tracks8
Construction
Structure typeStandard (on ground station)
ParkingAvailable
Other information
StatusFunctioning
Station codeRAJ
History
Opened1930
Rebuilt2003
Previous namesEastern Bengal Railway

Rajshahi Railway Station is a railway station at Rajshahi, Bangladesh.[1] The railway station is the main station of the city, and links to Dhaka via the Iswardi–Sirajganj line.[2] The station is one of the most modern, largest and important stations of Bangladesh Railway along with Dhaka and Chittagong railway station. Headquarter of Western Zone of Bangladesh Railway is also located within the station complex.[3]

History

In 1878, the railway route from Kolkata, then called Calcutta, to Siliguri was in two laps. The first lap was a 185 km journey along the Eastern Bengal State Railway from Calcutta Station (now Sealdah) to Damookdeah Ghat on the southern bank of the Padma River, then across the river in a ferry and the second lap of the journey. A 336 km metre gauge line of the North Bengal Railway linked Saraghat on the northern bank of the Padma to Siliguri.[4]

Rajshahi railway station during 1930s

Kolkata-Siliguri main line was converted to broad gauge in stages. The Hardinge Bridge was opened in 1915, while Sara-Sirajganj line was constructed by the Sara-Sirajganj Railway Company in 1915–1916. Then in 1930 Abdulpur-Amnura broad gauge was opened as a branch from Sara-Sirajganj line. Rajshahi railway station was opened as a station of Abdulpur-Amnura branch line.[5][6][7] The station terminal building, platform and yard was remodeled and revamped in 2003.[8]

Infrastructure

The structure of Rajshahi railway station is like a bird from the front. In front of the main entrance of the station there is a large parking lot for cars and other vehicles. There are restrooms and ticket counters on the right side of the main platform. On the left, there is another lounge for male passengers, a railway inquiry, a food restaurant, a bookstore and two fast food outlets. What makes the platform different, is its specialized roof. Instead of the traditional concrete roof, the roof is covered with a few different types of plastic with a few triangular shaped parts.

The main building has 3 floors with a total of 6 platforms. There is a mosque on the second floor on the left and a residential hotel on the second and third floors. The platform can be entered through two entrances on either side of the railway station. Here is also another platform which is not directly connected with the main station build. Mostly local trains from Chapainawabganj/ Rohanpur stopped there.
Train wash pits and carriage shops are located in the station yard. The wash pit is fully automatic.

Inner side of the main station building

Train services

Several trains from Rajshahi Railway Station to Dhaka, North Bengal and South Bengal run daily through this station. Five inter-city train services are operated by Bangladesh Railway, named "Silk City Express", "Padma Express" and "Dhumketu Express", "Banalata Express", and "Madhumati Express" between Dhaka and Rajshahi regularly from this station.[9][10] "Banalata Express", which is first ever non-stop train service on Dhaka-Rajshahi route connects this station with Dhaka and Chapainawabganj.[11] "Barendra Express" and "Titumir Express" trains travel to Chilahati in the Nilphamari and "Banglabanha Express" to Panchagarh. "Kapotaksha Express", "Sagordari Express", and "Tungipara Express" - these three trains travel to Khulna and Gopalganj in South Bengal. Several mail trains like "Rajshahi Express", "Mohananda Express", "Uttara Express", "Rajshahi commuter" trains run daily to Dhaka, Khulna and different direction of Bangladesh. Apart from this, local trains of several routes including Ishwardi, Chapainawabganj also run regularly from this station.[12] To transport Mango and other agricultural products a special parcel train "Mango Special" runs between the capital and Chapainawabganj through Rajshahi.[13]

International freight trains passes through this station before/after transit between Rohanpur and Singhabad. International passenger train service from Rajshahi to Kolkata is expected to be inaugurated. [14]

Train schedule

Intercity trains

Train No Name Off Day From Departure To Arrival
716 Kapotaksha Express Tuesday Rajshahi 14:15 Khulna 20:10
731 Barendra Express Sunday Rajshahi 15:00 Chilahati 21:25
733 Titumir Express Wednesday Rajshahi 06:20 Chilahati 13:00
754 Silkcity Express Sunday Rajshahi 07:40 Dhaka 13:30
756 Madumati Express Thursday Rajshahi 6:40 Dhaka 14:00
760 Padma Express Tuesday Rajshahi 16:00 Dhaka 21:40
762 Sagardari Express Monday Rajshahi 06:40 Khulna 12:10
770 Dhumkatu Express Wednesday Rajshahi 23:20 Dhaka 04:45
780 Dhalachor Express Monday Rajshahi 16:40 Dhalarchar (Pabna) 20:15
784 Tungipara Express Monday Rajshahi 15:30 Gobra 22:25
791 Banalata Express Friday Rajshahi 18:35 Chapainawabganj 19:30
792 Banalata Express Friday Rajshahi 07:00 Dhaka 11:30
803 Banglabandha Express Friday Rajshahi 21:15 B Sirajul Islam
(Panchagarh)		 05:10

Mail/Express and mail trains

Train No Name Off Day From Departure To Arrival
5 Rajshahi Express No Rajshahi 20:15 Chapainowabgonj 22:30
6 Rajshahi Express No Rajshahi 10:15 Iswardi 12:40
15 Mohananda Express No Rajshahi 19:45 Chapainowabgonj 21:20
16 Mohananda Express No Rajshahi 07:15 Khulna 16:40
31 Uttara Express No Rajshahi 12:30 Parbatipur 20:05
563 Local No Rajshahi 06:10 Rohanpur 08:30
564 Local No Rajshahi 21:30 Ishurdi 23:20
565 Local No Rajshahi 13:00 Chapainowabgonj 14:00

Commuter and shuttle trains

Train No Name Off Day From Departure To Arrival
57 Rohanpur Commuter Tuesday Rajshahi 09:15 Rohanpur 11:10
77 Rohanpur Commuter Tuesday Rajshahi 15:00 Rohanpur 16:40
78 Iswadi Commuter Tuesday Rajshahi 18:30 Iswadi 21:00
Shuttle 1 Chapainowabgonj Shuttle 1 No Rajshahi 5:50 Chapainowabgonj 07:15
Shuttle 1 Chapainowabgonj Shuttle 3 Wednesday Rajshahi 17:15 Chapainowabgonj 18:40

Goods trains

Train No Name Off Day From Departure To Arrival Comment
Mango Special 1 No Rajshahi 08:55 Chapainowabgonj 10:15
Mango Special 2 No Rajshahi 17:50 Dhaka 01:00

Gallery

  • Entrance of Rajshahi Railway Station
    Entrance of Rajshahi Railway Station
  • Rajshahi Railway Station
    Rajshahi Railway Station
  • Platform of Rajshahi Railway Station
    Platform of Rajshahi Railway Station
  • Platform of Rajshahi Railway Station
    Platform of Rajshahi Railway Station
  • Front part of Rajshahi Railway Station
    Front part of Rajshahi Railway Station
  • Rajshahi Railway Station yard
    Rajshahi Railway Station yard
  • Mango Special Train at Rajshahi Railway Station
    Mango Special Train at Rajshahi Railway Station
  • An oil tanker at Rajshahi Railway Station
    An oil tanker at Rajshahi Railway Station
  • Rajshahi Railway Station at night
    Rajshahi Railway Station at night
  • Steam locomotive at Rajshahi Railway Headquarter
    Steam locomotive at Rajshahi Railway Headquarter

See also

References

  1. ^ "Tk 7,784cr railway projects in Rajshahi". The Independent. Retrieved 11 July 2019.
  2. ^ "Tk 7,784cr BR west zone projects implemented in 10 years". Bangladesh Observer. Retrieved 11 July 2019.
  3. ^ "The plight of Railways". The Financial Express. Retrieved 11 July 2019.
  4. ^ "India: the complex history of the junctions at Siliguri and New Jalpaiguri". IRFCA. Retrieved 12 July 2019.
  5. ^ "Brief History". Bangladesh Railway. Archived from the original on 20 December 2011. Retrieved 11 July 2019.
  6. ^ "Railways in colonial Bengal". The Daily Star. Retrieved 11 July 2019.
  7. ^ "Brief History of Bangladesh Railway". Retrieved 12 July 2019.
  8. ^ "Train rolls thru' Jamuna bridge from today". The Daily Star. Retrieved 12 July 2019.
  9. ^ "First Rajshahi-Dhaka direct train launched". The Daily Star. Retrieved 11 July 2019.
  10. ^ "New inter-city train on Dhaka-Rajshahi route from Nov 23". The Daily Star. Retrieved 11 July 2019.
  11. ^ "PM opens first-ever non-stop train service on Dhaka-Rajshahi route". Dhaka Tribune. Retrieved 12 July 2019.
  12. ^ "Time Schedule of Rajshahi Station". Bangladesh Railway. Retrieved 11 July 2019.
  13. ^ "Special train begins transporting mangoes from Rajshahi to capital". Dhaka Tribune. Retrieved 5 June 2020.
  14. ^ "PM to inaugurate 29 projects in Rajshahi". Dhaka Tribune. Retrieved 11 July 2019.
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External links

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