Bandel–Howrah Local

Bandel–Howrah Local
Howrah–Bandel Local

Overview
Service type	Kolkata Suburban Railway / Commuter
Status	Operating
Locale	Hooghly and Howrah district of West Bengal
Current operator(s)	Eastern Railway
Route
Termini	Bandel Junction Howrah
Stops	17
Distance travelled	39 km (24 mi)
Average journey time	1 hour 3 minutes
Service frequency	Daily[1]
Train number(s)	37211 – 37291[Note 1]
Line(s) used	Howrah–Barddhaman main line[4]
On-board services
Class(es)	General (Unreserved) [5]
Seating arrangements	Available
Catering facilities	Unavailable
Observation facilities	Openable windows available
Baggage facilities	Overhead racks, Below the seats
Technical
Rolling stock	ICF coach[6]
Track gauge	1,676 mm (5 ft 6 in)[Note 2]
Electrification	25 kV AC overhead line[Note 3] completed in 1957[8]
Operating speed	39 km/h (24 mph) maximum, 38 km/h (24 mph) average including halts[6][Note 4]
Route map v t e Bandel–Howrah Line Howrah Junction Howrah Cabin Howrah Goods Cabin Liluah Sorting Yard Cabin Liluah Belur Bally Howrah Hooghly border Uttarpara Hind Motor Konnagar Rishra Shrirampur Seoraphuli Junction Baidyabati Bhadreshwar Mankundu Chandan Nagar Chuchura Hooghly Bandel Junction

Bandel–Howrah Local (/bændɛl hˈaʊrɑː/ bæn-del hau-rah) is a commuter passenger train of Kolkata Suburban Railway belonging to Eastern Railway Zone of Indian Railways. It runs between Bandel Junction and Howrah on a daily basis. It is usually the busiest and most crowded train operating from Bandel.^{[citation needed]} The ticket for this train from Bandel Junction is 10 rupees.^[9][10]

It runs multiple times from Bandel and Howrah, usually 25 or more times in a day. It goes through 15 stations and stops at each one before reaching its destination. The train takes 1 hours and 3 minutes on average to get to Howrah.^[6] Bandel–Howrah Locals cross Hooghly District to reach Howrah in Howrah District. Bally is generally considered to be the first station in Howrah District, making Uttarpara the last station to be in Hooghly District.

In late 1848, the financial condition of Great Britain began to improve and the political pressure orchestrated by Rowland Stephenson, John Chapman and their allies pushed the Court of Directors of the East India Company into negotiating contracts with the Great Indian Peninsular Railway and East India Railway. The two companies eventually got their guarantee–a generous five percent return on invested capital and other favourable conditions from an offer made in March 1849. And contractually formalised five months later after Acts of Parliament incorporated both with limited liability. Private companies could start to build their railways in India but their financial risk had been shifted to the Indian people.^[11]

The initial contracts were small and designed to fund small stretches of railway line. In Eastern India the 121 miles (195 km) line from Howrah to Raniganj was explicitly labelled as an "Experimental" line designed to test whether the railways could be built and successfully operated in India. Nevertheless, the construction of the lines began. The GIPR's Bombay–Thane line was opened in 1853, where the first train in India ran. The 37 miles (60 km) Howrah to Pundooah line of EIR was completed in September 1854.^[11]

The first train of the East India Railway Company ran from Howrah to Hooghly on 15 August 1854, a 24 miles (39 km) stretch of rail line. From that day onwards, the company ran regular train services with stops at Bally, Shrirampur and Chandannagar. The main booking office was on the Calcutta bank of Hooghly river, the Armenian ghat today. Three thousand people applied for tickets for the first train, but only a small portion of such people were able to board. Howrah station at that time was simply a tin shed with a small booking office and a small narrow platform.^[12]

This first division of experimental line from Howrah to Hooghly, was opened for passenger traffic on 15 August 1854, an extension to Pundooah railway station was opened a fortnight later. During the first sixteen weeks, no less than 109,634 passengers boarded these regular trains, the gross earnings (including those for a few tons of merchandise) were 6,792 British pounds, 15 Shillings, and 9 British pennies (approx. ₤652,500 in 2025), which is an average of ₤424 10s. and 11${\displaystyle {\tfrac {11}{13}}}$d. (₤40,700 in 2025) per week.^[13]

Looking to the small portion of line opened, the traffic has far exceeded the most sanguine expectations ; and perhaps the most gratifying feature of all is in the fact that, contrary to a general belief in the indisposition and inability of the natives to avail themselves of railway communication, by far the largest number of passengers carried has been of the third class. The following is an analysis of the traffic:- First Class, 5,511 ; Second Class, 21,005 ; Third Class, 83,118.^[13]

It was considered an extraordinary act that the poorest of the inhabitants had been able to board the railway when it was directly opened. The third class fare in that time was ${\displaystyle {\tfrac {3}{8}}}$penny per mile of travel and there were only three classes, this act proved that neither caste or money prejudice and neither other considerations would have prevented the natives from using the new means of transport, many people before, held a contrary opinion.^[13]

Travelling by the Rail very much resembles migrating in one vast colony, or setting out together in a whole moving town or caravan. Nothing under this enormous load is ever tagged to the back of a locomotive, and yet we were no sooner in motion than Calcutta, and the Hooghly, and Howrah all began to recede away like the scenes in a Dissolving View...^[14]

From Howrah to Bally the journey now-a-days is one of five minutes. In twice that time one reaches to Serampore. The next station is Chandernagore–thence to Chinsurah, and then on to Hooghly and Muggra. The Danes, the Dutch, the French, the Portuguese, and the English, all settling at these places in each other's neighbourhood, once presented the microcosm of Europe on the banks of the Hooghly. All along the road the villages still turn out to see the progress of the train and gaze in ignorant admiration at the little world borne upon its back.^[15]

The average speed of the train is 38 km/h.^[6] It stops at 15 stations (17 including Bandel and Howrah) and waits for more time in Bandel and Howrah Junction.^[16] The amount of time it waits at the other non-junction stations is the same, including Seoraphuli Junction, that is 1 minute.^[16]

This train is usually very crowded at all times, especially from Bandel Junction. This is because more people go to Howrah rather than Bandel.^{[citation needed]}

The train runs through Howrah–Barddhaman main line. It runs from Bandel and stops at the following stations in order:

Before reaching Howrah Junction.^{[1][16][10][18]}

Bandel Junction is a major and one of the crucial railway stations in India serving the city of Bandel. It is often considered to be the busiest and a major transportation hub in Hooghly district. Bandel has many facilities for travelling passengers such as food stalls, waiting rooms, sanitized washrooms and restrooms, also featuring parking facilities.^[19][20] Its station code is BDC^[17] and a total of around 350 trains pass through it.^[21] Bandel also makes its way in the top hundred train ticket booking and train travelling stations of the Indian Railways.^[22] The station currently has seven platforms, namely 1A, 1B, 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5. But it is subject to change from 31 May 2022 due to the electrical interlocking work at Bandel, from which the station platforms will change: 1B would become 1, 1A → 2, 1 → 3, 2 → 4, 3 → 5, 4 → 7 and 5 → platform number 6, announced by the station master, Bidhan Sarkar.^[23][24] Bandel currently serves primarily for suburban customers or commuters, with local trains accounting to 80% of its footfall. Ashwini Vaishnaw, the Railway Minister of India has regulated reviewing and approval for the upgrades and redevelopment of various railway stations,^[25] including Bandel Jn,^[26] to transform it into a world-class railway station.^[27][28] This redevelopment aims for improving passenger experience and upgrading the station's infrastructure. The new, upgraded station is set to involve the construction of a concourse area and new platforms, improving the existing ones, high speed Wi-Fi and also feature amenities like modern waiting areas, restrooms, upgraded information system and security features such as CCTV cameras.^[29][30] Bandel's redesign was implemented when Eastern Railway's general manager, Arun Arora held a momentous meeting at the ER headquarters in Fairlie Place in Kolkata. All the principal heads of departments and DRMs of Howrah and Sealdah division were present, and a presentation about the matter was made by a Delhi-based architect, for the speedy execution of a ₹349 crore (US$41 million) transformation project of Bandel Junction, to make it into a world class railway station.^{[31][32][33][34][35]} Bandel station was closed for three days because of the construction of Bandel–Mogra third rail line, a 6.99 km line and also for the electronic interlocking system works in the station. These works started from 27 May and were completed by 30 May, a Monday. This new Electronic Interlocking System of Bandel is considered to be largest electronic interlocking system in the world, consisting of 1002 interlocking routes, replacing the old system with only about 492 routes. Puneet Pathak, the managing director of Param Enterprise, the contractor of this project, said that they have submitted an application for the inclusion of Bandel Junction in the Guinness Book of World Records, the platforms numbers have also been changed because of this reason. Indian Railways has already recognized Bandel as the world's largest interlocking system.^{[24][36][37][38]}

Hooghly railway station is an important historical station of Eastern Railway. On 15 August 1854, the first train of East India Railway Company ran from Howrah to Hooghly, covering a distance of 24 miles (39 km). Regular services were also introduced from that day.^[39] The East India Railway Company was established by the British, or more specifically during the time of East India Company, to manage and develop railway operations and systems in Eastern and Northern parts of India.^[40] The company ran regular services from 15 August onwards with stops at Bally, Shrirampur and Chandannagar. The fare at the time ranged from ₹3 (equivalent to ₹2,000 or US$23 in 2023) for first class and 7 annas for third class. The main booking office was on the Calcutta bank of Hooghly River, currently the Armenian Ghat. Three thousand people applied for tickets on this first train, but only a small portion were actually able to be accommodated on the train. Thousands of people were present along the tracks to see the first train of Eastern Railway.^[41]

First train of East India Railway Company, from Howrah to Hooghly

21 December 2024: Starting from 21 December 2024, the Howrah Division of Eastern Railway announced the cancellation of at least 60 suburban local trains including Bandel–Howrah Local due to the construction of a bow string girder bridge, which is a new two-lane Benaras road over bridge, near Howrah station, as said by a senior ER manager. The Chandmari bridge in Howrah was also being repaired besides the Benaras road bridge in Salkia.^[42] At least 30 Bandel–Howrah Local trains and some other trains such as Howrah–Belur Math, Howrah–Shrirampur local would be cancelled, according to Divisional Railway Manager Sanjeev Kumar. Even express trains such as Gaya–Howrah express and Azimganj–Howrah passenger special had been delayed or rescheduled. These adjustments would start from 21 December 2024 and continue till 1 February 2025.^[43][44] The following trains have been cancelled.

• 37215, 37231, 37237, 37243, 37249, 37253, 37255 37257, 37263, 37267, 37271, 37275, 37277, 37285 (Howrah to Bandel)
• 37212, 37214, 37216, 37218, 37222, 37230 37232, 37236, 37244, 37250, 37254, 37278, 37288(Bandel to Howrah)
• 37201 Howrah–Bandel Local, 37220, 37264 Bandel–Howrah Local (All run daily except Sundays)

The above are the 30 trains have been cancelled for about 33 days.^[45]

8 September 2022: Around a total of 189 trains had been cancelled on 8 September 2022 because of some operational or maintenance issues. As per the IRCTC website, the list includes trains running from several cities, but many of them are local trains running from important West Bengal cities like Howrah, Bardhaman, Naihati and Sealdah. This list includes a lot of local trains on the Kolkata suburban railway network such as Bardhhaman–Howrah Chord Local, Belur Math–Howrah Local and Naihati–Sealdah Local; but only 2 Bandel–Howrah Local or Howrah–Bandel Local trains had been cancelled.^[46]

• 37211 Howrah–Bandel Local (Howrah to Bandel Junction)
• 37216 Bandel–Howrah Local (Bandel to Howrah Junction)^[46]

14 December 2024: Indian Railways has cancelled the operations of many trains (more than 75), for reasons such as maintenance work. A lot of EMU trains such as Howrah–Bardhaman EMU, Sealdah–Baruipara EMU and Masagram–Howrah EMU have been cancelled. There any only 6 such Bandel–Howrah Local trains that have been cancelled.^[47]

• 37243, 37245, 37283 Howrah–Bandel Local (Howrah to Bandel Junction)
• 37216, 37222, 37240 Bandel–Howrah Local (Bandel to Howrah Junction)^[47]

27 October 2022: The Indian Railway cancelled around 94 trains that were scheduled to depart on this day. A large number of trains had been cancelled including mails, commuters and express. These trains were cancelled, according to the National Train Enquiry System (NTES), because of repairs and other reasons in different parts of the country. These cancellations, mostly in the commuters could have led to daily passengers facing trouble. The trains might also have been cancelled because of different reasons, such as storms, heavy rain or floods. 6 Bandel–Howrah Locals had been cancelled.^[48]

• 37211 (4:47 am), 37247 (1:15 pm), 37253 (2:40 pm) (Howrah to Bandel trains)
• 37216 (4:45 am), 37246 (12:30 pm), 37256 (3:10 pm) (Bandel to Howrah trains)

13 August 2022: The same above Bandel–Howrah Local trains had been cancelled on the day. Other than that, 17 trains had been rescheduled and 18 were diverted. The reasons include railway track maintenance, technical reasons, etc. But the main reason was heavy rainfall and storms that had been occurring recently in the country. The total trains cancelled on the day were 167.^[49]

27 February 2025: Train movement on the Howrah–Barddhaman main line was disrupted for almost three hours when the pantograph of a Bandel–Howrah EMU train got entangled with the overhead wire while the train was leaving Bandel Junction, said by an ER official. The movement of trains on the line was affected from 8:20 a.m. till 11:07 a.m. during morning rush hours. Trains on the Howrah–Barddhaman main line were restored after the necessary repairs were completed at 11:07 am. About 23 suburban trains were cancelled in the section because of the disruption, said by the official.^{[50][51][52][53]}

12 May 2022: Train services in the Bandel–Howrah line would remain shut for four hours each day for two weeks from May 13. This was notified by Eastern Railways. Trains services would remain closed from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. everyday from May 13 to 26 in this section. 18 trains on the Bandel–Howrah line would be cancelled. Other lines include Bandel–Mogra, Howrah–Barddhaman main line, Bandel–Katwa and Bandel–Naihati.^[54]

4 August 2024: On Sunday, while 37248 Down Howrah–Bandel Local was reaching for Howrah, passengers saw flames coming out of the pantograph of the wire while it was entering Baidyabati station on the line. It took place at around 1:45 a.m. in the afternoon when the train was entering platform number 1 of Baidyabati. Because of the fire, many passengers on the train quickly got off at the station. The train was operating on the down (reverse) line and train movement on said line was shut down for more than half an hour, or roughly 35 minutes; the train itself was also stopped for that much time. Upon receiving the incident's news, Government Railway Police (GRP) of Seoraphuli, Railway Protection Force (RPF) and other railway staff and employees arrived at the scene. Later, the train which was now empty, was sent to Howrah station and train movement on the line was restored.^{[55][56][57][58]}

There are about 80 total services of Bandel–Howrah Local that are functional or used to be functional (mainly because of cancellations). Not all of them run daily. (Sources: India Rail Info, Etrain.info, trainspnrstatus.com)^{[Note 5]}

This section is in a state of significant expansion or restructuring. You are welcome to assist in its construction by editing it as well. This template was placed by Babin Mew (talk · contribs). If this section has not been edited in several days, please remove this template. If you are the editor who added this template and you are actively editing, please be sure to replace this template with {{in use}} during the active editing session. Click on the link for template parameters to use. This article was last edited by Babin Mew (talk | contribs) 47 seconds ago. (Update timer)