Patna Junction railway station

Patna Junction (station code PNBE) is a major railway station in the capital city of Patna in the Indian state of Bihar. Situated in heart of the city,[5] it is the main railway station serving Patna. It falls under the Danapur division of the East Central Railway zone of the Indian Railways. Patna Junction is one of the busiest railway stations of the country.[6]

Patna Junction
Indian Railways station
The main entrance of the station
LocationStation Road, Near Mahavir Mandir, Patna- 800001 Bihar
India
Coordinates25°36′10″N 85°8′15″E
Elevation57 metres (187 ft)
Owned byECR
Operated byIndian Railways
Line(s)Howrah–Delhi main line
Asansol–Patna section
Patna–Mughalsarai section
Patna–Gaya line
Patna–Sonepur–Hajipur section
Platforms10[1]
Tracks15
Construction
Structure typeStandard (on-ground station)
ParkingAvailable
Other information
StatusFunctional
Station codePNBE
Zone(s) East Central Railway
Division(s) Danapur
History
Opened1862[2]
Electrified2003–2004[3]
Previous namesBankipore Junction
Passengers
20134 lakh per day[4]
Services
Preceding station   East Central Railway zone   Following station
Sachiwalaya halt
Digha, Patna
Sachivalaya Halt
Patna–Mughalsarai section
Patna–Gaya line
Towards Jehanabad
Location
Patna Junction
Location with Patna
Patna Junction
Patna Junction (Bihar)
Patna Junction
Patna Junction (Patna)

Patna Junction railway station is connected to most of the major cities in India by the railway network.[7] Patna lies in between New Delhi and Kolkata which is one of the busiest rail routes in India. Patna has trains running frequently to Delhi and Kolkata.[8] The city is a major railway hub and has six major stations: Patna Junction, Rajendranagar Terminal, Gulzarbagh station, Danapur railway station, Patliputra Junction and Patna Sahib station. Patna is well connected with Ara, Gaya, Jehanabad, Biharsharif, Rajgir, Islampur through daily passenger and express train services.

History
A WDP-4B class locomotive at Patna
km
0
 New Delhi
Yamuna
Delhi
Uttar Pradesh
border
Kanpur–Delhi section
131
 Aligarh
210
 Tundla
301
 Etawah
441
 Kanpur Central
Mughalsarai–Kanpur section
635
 Allahabad
Howrah–Allahabad–Mumbai line
786
 Mughalsarai
Howrah–Gaya–Delhi line
Patna–Mughalsarai section
Uttar Pradesh
Bihar
border
881
 Buxar
950
 Ara
Son River
990
 Danapur
Patna–Gaya line
999
 Patna
Punpun River
Asansol–Patna section
1,044
 Bakhtiyarpur
Bakhtiyarpur–Tilaiya line
1,063
 Barh
1,088
 Mokama
Mokama–Barauni section
Gaya–Kiul line
1,123
 Kiul
Sahibganj loop
1,150
 Jamui
1,176
 Jhajha
Bihar
Jharkhand
border
1,220
 Jasidih
Jasidih–Dumka–Rampurhat line
Ajay River
Madhupur–Giridih–Koderma line
1,249
 Madhupur
1305
 Chittaranjan
Jharkhand
West Bengal
border
Howrah–Gaya–Delhi line
Asansol–Tatanagar–Kharagpur line
1,330
 Asansol
Bardhaman–Asansol section
1,373
 Durgapur
1,437
 Barddhaman
Howrah–Bardhaman chord
1,532
 Howrah
km
Sources:
 
Google maps
India Rail Info[9]

Patna Junction railway station was opened in 1862 as Bankipore Junction[10] in Bankipore (Bankipur) town, headquarters of the division and Patna district in Bengal, British India.[11] The construction of railway line through Patna was started in 1855 and was completed and opened in 1862.[12] Prior to that the transport of raw materials and finished goods was done through the river transport on Ganga river.[2] There are two branch lines one is in the western zone that connects Patna junction railway station with Digha Ghat and the other is in the eastern zone connecting the Patna City railway station with Patna Ghat.[2] The Danapur Division came into existence on 1 January 1925. The present Divisional Railway Managers's office building was built in 1929.[13]

In 1948 Eastern Railway (ER) started an exclusively third class express train known as 'Janta Express' on 1 October 1948. This initially ran between Patna and Delhi and later on was extended from Delhi up to Howrah in 1949. This was the first Janta Express train in India.[14]

At the Rajendra Nagar Terminal and Patna Junction route relay interlocking (RRI) system were installed between 7 February 2012 till 12 February. The presence of RRI system allows computer operated change of tracks for running trains.[15] The presence of RRT system improves the safety of the railway traffic in the region.[1]

Bridge

In 2009, the construction of Digha–Sonpur Bridge, was underway on the banks on the Ganges nearby, connected Patna to Pahleja Ghat. The railway part of bridge was opened to rail traffic from 3 February 2016 and railway started passenger service from Patliputra Junction to various railway stations on north side of Ganges in Bihar.[16][17][18]

Facilities

The major facilities are mechanised cleaning, free WiFi in entire Patna Junction, free RO mineral water, available are waiting rooms, retiring room, computerised reservation facility, reservation counter, vehicle parking etc.[19] The vehicles are allowed to enter the station premises.Recently, in an innovative move aimed at helping travellers during the COVID-19 pandemic, the first automated Mask and Sanitizer Dispenser(MSD) machine installed by a Delhi-based vendor, was commissioned.[20] There are refreshment rooms vegetarian and non-vegetarian, tea stall, book stall, post and telegraphic office and Government Railway Police (GRP) office.[21] There is a special foreign tourist ticket counter at the first floor reservation office in the right hand wing of the railway station premises.[22] Patna Junction is located close to the bus terminal and domestic airport providing transport to important destinations of Bihar.[21]

To modernise the train inquiry system a call centre has been opened at Patna in 2005.[23] People from Bihar can inquire about arrival and departure of trains, reservation status, fare, concessions, etc., by dialling a universal telephone number 139 at local call rates. 200 to 500 lines are used in a call centre to ensure that the phone lines do not remain busy and a large number of people can access the facility of enquiry simultaneously. This facility was extended throughout India by the end of 2005–06 to get the desired train related information by dialling a universal number 139 at local call charges.[23] Automatic ticket vending machines have been installed to reduce the queue for train tickets on the station.[24] One of the two departmental catering units of Danapur division are located at Patna Junction, the other being at Kiul Junction.[25] Patna Junction is going to have a metro station under Patna Metro.[26]

Recently, Indian Railways under its station redevelopment and beautification initiative, renovated and beautified the waiting hall.[27] It has been set up over an area of 7500 sq ft, providing seating capacity for over 300 passengers.[28] Additionally 200 more seats are planned.The newly opened waiting hall is said to be largest waiting hall in the Indian Railways network.The new waiting hall has been provided with 7 HD screens of 65" displaying entertainment related content as well as train information 24*7.[28] The walls of the waiting hall has been beautified to promote local art with all the walls being covered in Madhubani painting with bright and attractive colours.[28] For the convenience of the passengers the entire waiting hall has been centrally air-conditioned.The waiting hall has also been provided with additional fans and lighted with 100 percent LED fixtures concealed in the ceiling.The station has lactation room for mothers so that the lactating mothers will be able to comfortably feed their babies in privacy.[29] The railway station has already been fitted with high-speed wireless internet service for passengers to enjoy free Wi-Fi facility.[29]

Platforms

There are 10 platforms at Patna Junction.[1] The platforms are interconnected with three foot overbridges (FOB). The western overbridge is called the Delhi end FOB and the easternmost FOB is called Kolkata end FOB.[30]

Escalators

Patna Junction is among the selected railway stations of India where automated escalators are being installed. Escalators are installed on Platform 10.[31]

Trains

Patna Junction railway station is a major station of the East Central Railways. Its location on the Delhi–Kolkata rail route, makes Patna Junction served by several Express and Superfast trains from all over the country. Several electrified local Passenger trains also run from Patna to neighbouring destinations on frequent intervals.

Nearest airports

The nearest airports to Patna Junction are:

  1. Lok Nayak Jayaprakash Airport, Patna 5 kilometres (3.1 mi)
  2. Gaya Airport 108 kilometres (67 mi)
  3. Darbhanga Airport

See also

Patna travel guide from Wikivoyage

References
  1. "Route relay interlocking system now operational at Patna junction". The Times of India. 20 February 2012. Retrieved 6 April 2012.
  2. Intra Urban Market Geography. Concept Publishing Company. 1980. pp. 35–. GGKEY:H0N03P8ZTPB. Retrieved 6 April 2012.
  3. "History of Electrification". information published by CORE (Central Organisation for Railway Electrification). CORE (Central Organisation for Railway Electrification). Retrieved 1 April 2012.
  4. Kumod Verma (17 December 2013). "Patna Junction to get two escalators by Jan-end". The Times of India. Retrieved 4 January 2014.
  5. "Patna serial blasts". India Today. 29 October 2013. Archived from the original on 18 September 2016.
  6. "Patna by Railways". go4patna.com. Archived from the original on 19 October 2016.
  7. Kory Goldberg; Michelle Dcary (9 November 2009). Along the Path – The Meditator's Companion to the Buddha's Land. Pariyatti. pp. 200–. ISBN 978-1-928706-56-4. Retrieved 6 April 2012.
  8. Tom Woodhatch (1999). Nepal handbook. Footprint Travel Guides. pp. 435–. ISBN 978-1-900949-44-6. Retrieved 6 April 2012.
  9. "12304 Poorva Express (via Howrah)". India Rail Info.
  10. Amit Bhelari (28 February 2015). "Train to trace travels of Mahatma". Telegraph India. Archived from the original on 22 December 2015. Retrieved 18 December 2015.
  11. "Imperial Gazetteer2 of India, Volume 6, page 382 – Imperial Gazetteer of India — Digital South Asia Library". Dsal.uchicago.edu. 18 February 2013. Archived from the original on 22 December 2015. Retrieved 18 December 2015.
  12. O'Malley, L. S. S. (1924). Bihar And Orissa District Gazetteers Patna — L.S.S. O'malley — Google Books. ISBN 9788172681210. Archived from the original on 22 December 2015. Retrieved 18 December 2015.
  13. "Danapur Division". Background. Official Website of the East Central Railway, Gov of India. Archived from the original on 6 May 2014. Retrieved 6 April 2012.
  14. "Indian Railway History Time line". Archived from the original on 14 July 2012. Retrieved 7 April 2012.
  15. "Several trains rescheduled, cancelled from Feb 7 to 12". The Times of India. 5 February 2012. Retrieved 6 April 2012.
  16. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 13 March 2016. Retrieved 3 February 2016.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  17. "India's longest rail-cum-road bridge to come up in Bihar". Hindustan Times. 12 October 2009. Archived from the original on 23 October 2010. Retrieved 4 March 2012.
  18. "Digha bridge cost likely to jump by Rs 3,000 cr". The Times of India. 3 July 2011.
  19. "List of Locations (Irrespective of States) Where Computerized Reservation Facilities Are Available". Official website of the Indian Railways. Archived from the original on 3 July 2013. Retrieved 18 April 2012.
  20. Rajesh Kumar, Thakur (9 June 2020). "Machine to dispense mask and sanitizer installed at Patna railway station". The New Indian Express. The New Indian Express. Retrieved 2 February 2021.
  21. "Patna Railway station". Travel, Indian Railways. makemytrip.com. Archived from the original on 26 April 2012. Retrieved 5 April 2012.
  22. Sarina Singh; Lindsay Brown; Mark Elliott; Paul Harding; Abigail Hole; Patrick Horton (1 September 2009). Lonely Planet India. Lonely Planet. pp. 573–. ISBN 978-1-74179-151-8. Retrieved 6 April 2012.
  23. "Speech: Railway Budget 2005–06". Press Information Bureau, Govt of India. Archived from the original on 8 February 2012. Retrieved 7 April 2012.
  24. "8 more stations to be made models". The Times of India. 12 May 2002. Retrieved 17 April 2012.
  25. "Rly catering services to be privatised". The Times of India. 28 November 2004. Retrieved 17 April 2012.
  26. Patna Metro Archived 25 October 2013 at the Wayback Machine
  27. Devanjana, Nag (16 September 2019). "Indian Railways largest waiting hall opens at Patna Junction! From digital screens to local art, see features". The Financial Express. The New Indian Express. Retrieved 2 February 2021.
  28. Devanjana, Nag (16 September 2019). "Indian Railways largest waiting hall opens at Patna Junction! From digital screens to local art, see features". The Financial Express. Financial Express. Retrieved 2 February 2021.
  29. "Railway station upgrade! Patna station gets an artistic makeover. See pics". www.timesnownews.com. Times Now. 25 February 2019. Retrieved 2 February 2021.
  30. "'Stampede' on Patna Junction FOB". The Times of India. 15 November 2007. Retrieved 7 April 2012.
  31. "Patna Junction to have Automatic Escalators for Passengers". Archived from the original on 7 July 2013. Retrieved 4 September 2013.
  32. "Tejaswi rolls out red carpet for Chetan Bhagat". The Hindu. 13 April 2016.
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