>Billjones94 at 05:38, 10 September 2021

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imported>Nolicmahr at 14:20, 5 September 2021

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{{Use dmy dates|date=January 2016}}
{{Use Indian English|date=January 2016}}
{{Infobox company
|name = Bombay, Baroda and Central India Railway
|logo = BBCI Logo.jpg
|type =
|foundation =1855
|location_city = Bombay
|location_country = [[British Raj|British India]]
|location =
|locations = 
|key_people =
|area_served = [[Bombay Presidency]] and [[Rajputana Agency]]
|industry = [[Railways]]
|products =
|services = [[Rail transport]]
|revenue =
|operating_income =
|net_income =
|num_employees =
|parent =
|divisions =
|subsid =
|caption =
|homepage =
|dissolved = 1951
|footnotes =
|intl =
}}
[[File:M2-162 Indian Railway Museum.jpg|thumb|350px|Bombay, Baroda and Central India Railway train at the [[National Rail Museum, New Delhi]]]]

The '''Bombay, Baroda and Central India Railway''' ([[reporting mark]] '''BB&CI''') was a company incorporated in 1855 to undertake the task of constructing railway lines between [[Bombay]] to the erstwhile [[Baroda State]], that became the present-day [[Baroda (Vadodara)]] city in [[western India]]. BB&CI completed the work in 1864. The first suburban railway in India was started by BB&CI, operating between [[Virar]] and [[Churchgate railway station|Churchgate]] (later extended to [[Colaba]]), a railway station in [[Bombay Backbay]] in April 1867.

The railway was divided into two main systems, broad (5 ft. 6 in.) and [[Metre gauge railway|metre gauge]]. There was also a comparatively small mileage of 2 ft. 6 in. gauge line worked by the BB&CI on behalf of the Indian States. In 1947 the mileage of the respective portions was stated to be: broad gauge, 1,198 miles, with a further 69 miles worked for Indian States; metre gauge, 1,879 miles, with a further 106 miles worked for Indian States; narrow-gauge, 152 miles, worked for Indian States and various companies. Quadruple track mileage was 22 and double-track 250, the remainder of the system being single-track, whilst running powers were exercised over 147 miles (including the important section from Muttra Junction to Delhi, owned by the [[Great Indian Peninsular Railway]]).<ref>Article by H.C. Towers in ''The Railway Magazine'', vol. 93, no. 568, March and April, 1947</ref>

The main headquarters of the BB&CI Railway was located at [[Churchgate railway station|Churchgate]], Bombay and the headquarters and workshops for the [[Metre gauge railway|metre gauge]] tracks and services was located in [[Ajmer]].

== Description of systems ==
The broad-gauge main line ran northwards from Bombay to Baroda, where it bifurcated, the north-east main line continuing towards Delhi, and the north-west main line to the industrial city of [[Ahmedabad]] and onwards to [[Viramgam]] and Kharagoda. The north-east main line passed through Godhra, Ratlam, Kotah and Bayana (from where a branch line ran to [[Agra]] Fort), to Muttra Junction, where it joined the [[Great Indian Peninsular Railway]], over which it had running powers for 90 miles into Delhi.

The metre-gauge system was originally the [[Rajputana–Malwa Railway|Rajputana Malwa State Railway]]. It began at [[Ahmedabad]] and ran northwards through Baroda State and Rajputana ''via'' Abu, [[Ajmer]], [[Jaipur]] and Rewari to Delhi. There were branches from Rewari to Bhatinda and Fazilka, from [[Ajmer]] to Ratlam, Indore and Khandwa, and from Achnera to Cawnpore.<ref>Towers, ibid.</ref>

== Organisation ==
The original Bombay, Baroda & Central India Railway Company was purchased by the Government of India in 1905, but continued to be worked by a company with a board of directors in London until 1 January 1942, on which date the working was taken over by the government and it became part of the Indian State Railway system, directly under the Railway Board.<ref>Towers, ibid.</ref>

== Construction and opening ==
The section from [[Churchgate railway station|Churchgate]] to [[Ahmedabad]] was opened in stages between 1860 and 1870. The original Bombay terminus was at [[Grant Road]], subsequently extended to Churchgate in 1870 and to [[Colaba]], at the southern tip of the island of Bombay, in 1873. After the new Bombay Central station was opened in 1930, the line between Churchgate and Colaba was closed and removed.

The section from Godhra to Nagda was opened in 1896 and extended to Baroda. Nagda to Muttra Junction was opened in 1909, making possible through broad-gauge running between Bombay and Delhi.

The metre-gauge system was originally the [[Rajputana-Malwa Railway|Rajputana Malwa State Railway]] and was taken over subsequently by the BB&CI. The metre-gauge main line from Delhi to [[Jaipur]] was completed in 1874, extended to [[Ajmer]] in 1875 and to [[Ahmedabad]] in 1881.<ref>Towers, ibid.</ref> The branch from Rewari to Bhatinda and Fazilka was begun in 1881 by the Ferozepore & Rewari Railway, but the section between Bhatinda and Ferozepore was subsequently built to the broad-gauge and passed to the GIPR.

== Electrification ==
The Colaba-[[Borivali]] section (37.8 km) was electrified on 5 January 1928 on the 1.5 kV [[Direct current|DC]] system. The two tracks between Colaba and [[Grant Road]] stations were electrified, while four tracks between Grant Road and [[Bandra railway station]]s were electrified. Only two suburban tracks between Bandra and Borivali were electrified in 1928, two main tracks were left for the steam locomotives. In 1933, Colaba railway station and two electrified tracks between Colaba and [[Churchgate railway station]]s were dismantled. In 1936, electrification was extended to the two main tracks between Bandra and Borivali railway stations, left earlier and the two main tracks between Borivali and Virar railway stations were also electrified, resulting in completion of the electrification of the [[Churchgate]]-[[Virar]] section.<ref name=r1>Rao, M.A. (1988). ''Indian Railways'', New Delhi: National Book Trust, pp.150-1</ref>

== Locomotives and rolling stock ==
In 1947, the total numbers of broad-gauge locomotives in service were 363 steam, 10 diesel and 2 electric. There were 1,042 passenger coaches (including 40 electric motor and 120 electric trailer coaches) and 10,584 goods wagons.

The equivalent figures for the metre-gauge were 437 locomotives, 1,335 coaches, 3 Sentinel steam coaches, and 9,127 wagons.

On the 2 ft. 6 in. gauge there were 20 locomotives, 58 coaches and 259 wagons.<ref>All figures quoted by Towers, ibid.</ref>

== Later developments ==
In 1949, after independence of India, [[Gaekwar's Baroda State Railway]] was merged in to Bombay, Baroda and Central India Railway by Government of India.

On 5 November 1951 the Bombay, Baroda and Central India Railway was merged with the [[Saurashtra Railway]], [[Rajputana–Malwa Railway|Rajputana Railway]], [[Jaipur State Railway]] and [[Cutch State Railway]] to give rise to the [[Western Railway (India)|Western Railway]].

== Gandhi film ==
The railway is featured in many travel scenes in the 1982 film [[Gandhi (film)|Gandhi]] which tells the [[Biographical film|story]] of the leader of India's independence movement, [[Mahatma Gandhi|Gandhi]] played by the actor [[Ben Kingsley]].

== See also ==
* [[Frederick William Stevens]], architect and engineer
* [[Charles Ollivant]], company director

== References ==
=== Notes ===
{{Reflist}}
=== Further reading ===
{{refbegin}}
*{{cite book |last1=Gupta |first1=A. K. |last2=Bhaskar |first2=Ravinder |title=Steam Heritage of Western Railway |date=2018 |publisher=Western Railway |location=Mumbai |url=https://www.railenthusiastindia.org.in/portal/steam-heritage-western-railway}}
{{refend}}

== External links ==
* {{PM20|FID=co/050082|TEXT=Documents and clippings about|NAME=}}

{{Western Railway}}
{{Railways in Western India}}
{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bombay, Baroda And Central India Railway}}
[[Category:Transport in Mumbai]]
[[Category:Transport in Vadodara]]
[[Category:Defunct railway companies of India]]
[[Category:History of rail transport in Gujarat]]
[[Category:Rail transport in Maharashtra]]
[[Category:Railway companies established in 1855]]
[[Category:Railway companies disestablished in 1951]]
[[Category:1855 establishments in India]]
[[Category:1855 establishments in British India]]
[[Category:1951 disestablishments in India]]
[[Category:Indian companies established in 1855]]

Bombay, Baroda and Central India Railway - Revision history

>Billjones94 at 05:38, 10 September 2021

imported>Nolicmahr at 14:20, 5 September 2021