G 24 Hours Digital Bureau: The British brought railways to India. After the country gained independence in 1947, Indian Railways became a public railway service controlled by the Government of India. Today it is the fourth largest rail service in the world. Not only that, Indian Railways is the eighth largest commercial organization in the world with 12 lakh employees.
Today we are going to tell you a fact related to Indian Railways, which you will not believe at first hearing. Even today there is one railway in the country which is still under British occupation. This track is known as Shakuntala Railway Track. The length of this track from Amravati in Maharashtra to Murtajapur is about 190 km.
When and why was the track built?
Cotton was grown in Amravati, Maharashtra. This track was used to transport cotton from here to Mumbai port. Britain’s Click Nixon and Company established the Central Provinces Railway Company (CPRC) to build this railway. The construction of this track started in 1903, which was completed in 1916.
A passenger train was running on the track
There was only one train running on this track which was known as Shakuntala Passenger. Due to this, this railway line became famous as Shakuntala Railway Track. After 1994 diesel engines were installed in these trains instead of steam. This train stops at 17 stations and completes the journey in 6-7 hours.
After India’s independence, the agreement was signed
After independence, the Indian Railways entered into an agreement with the British company. Under this royalty is paid to the company every year by Indian Railways. According to the report, the company receives a royalty of Tk 1 crore 20 lakh every year.
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Despite receiving huge royalty, the British company does not pay any attention to the maintenance of this track, due to which the track has become completely dilapidated. The Shankutala Express running on it was also discontinued in 2020. Local residents have demanded to run this train again. It is said that Indian Railways tried to buy back this track but was unsuccessful.
