Bhopal Junction railway station

Bhopal Junction railway station (station code: BPL) is a major railway junction of India and main railway station of Bhopal, the capital of the central Indian state of Madhya Pradesh. This station also serves as a connecting point for various pilgrims from Asia to visit the Stupa of Sanchi, an important Buddhist stupa, which is about 40 km from this station.

Infrastructure
The station has 6 platforms in addition to enough waiting halls, refreshment centre, passenger ticket counter and ticket vending machines, vehicle parking, communication facility, sanitary facility and dedicated Government Railway Police force to ensure security.

History
The Bhopal–Itarsi section of New Delhi–Chennai main line was opened in 1884. Jhansi–Bhopal section was opened in 1889. In 1895, the Ujjain–Bhopal section was opened. The station building was constructed in year 1910.

In 1984, the station was affected by the Bhopal disaster, when toxic gas fumes from a nearby chemical plant leaked. In the station, staff, passengers, people fleeing the gases and other persons present died and were injured from inhaling these gases. Station staff still tried to alarm nearby stations not to send trains towards Bhopal. The station master made a stationary train, the Gorakhpur to Mumbai Express, leave immediately ahead of departure time to save the people on board.

Services
Bhopal Junction railway station is located on the main Delhi–Chennai route which halts more than 200 daily trains, with a total of more than 380 trains within a week. To the north of the Bhopal Junction lies Bina Junction, to the south lies Itarsi Junction. There is one track which connects Bhopal to the west with Ujjain Junction, Sehore, Shujalpur, Ratlam Junction and Ahmedabad Junction. Also to some portion of Indore Junction, Sehore, Shujalpur and Dewas Junction.

Development
The Bhopal railway station has become the India's first railway station to have a sanitary napkin vending machine named as ‘Happy Nari’. The machine dispenses two sanitary napkins at the cost of ₹5 only and accepts ₹5 coins. The sanitary pads vending machine has been installed at platform No.1 by the Railway Women Welfare Association of Bhopal. The machine has the capacity of holding 75 sanitary pads. A specially trained female staff will refill the machine.