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Rail transport in India began during the early 19th century.

Imperial origins
Empires are in constant competition with their near peer opponents. Whether it be trade, innovation, or even war, the constant need that drives these forces is always motivated by the country’s survival and its place in the world. Railways are one such innovation that impacted trade, communication, and war. Great Britain was at one point the largest empire in the world, with one of its key holdings in India. Looking at the map, we can see that India dwarfs the British isles many times over, so the distances to travel and to communicate would present a challenge in itself.

India was an economic anchor that the British Empire exploited for its own benefit. Getting the resources and materials needed to feed the empire was not easy, and was also a time-consuming process. The recent invention of the railway would be brought to India in the mid-19th century. It was intended to not only transport goods, but serve as a means of improving communication and transporting military personnel between cities to expedite their use wherever needed.[1] Colonizers would also perceive that the mere creation of a railroad would bring “backward societies into normative history.”[2] Whatever method was used to implement the railroad, this line of thinking by the powers that be, would justify the end state of railroad creation on the continent. While railroads weren’t built with the primary goal of transporting people, this was the biproduct of the development of such routes.[3] This enabled the people of the continent to travel further and quicker, while also having a drastic effect in how people communicated and traded.

Impact on Indian economy and society
Railways were one of the greatest factors in India’s economic development. The system made Trade within India as well as trade on the international market possible and dramatically increased from 1850 to ­1947. Prior to the railway's introduction, transportation across India was a challenge. Road conditions were poor and water transportation was limited to the coasts. Railways moved people and cargo across India unifying the local markets. Passenger travel by the early 20th Century surpassed 256 million annually. Economic policy was determined by the train system and culturally, Railways became a force for independence in India.

The colonial government’s stated goal was to make trade and travel inexpensive. In London, the project was lauded as a way to gain access to cotton markets within India's interior. Passenger travel was not an initial goal but, five years into the project the first passenger rail line was opened connecting Bombay to Thana. By the early 20th c passenger travel was a primary revenue stream and it the world’s fourth largest rail system though, compared to the population of India the capacity was still inadequate. Trainlines in imperial India were a public-private partnership. The Colonial government planned routs and private companies constructed them.

The passenger rail network was widespread by the 1910s leaving a great social impact on India. The railroads were the easiest way for the movement of people in India during the nineteenth century. Roads were not a priority for the government of India and were dangerous and difficult to traverse. For the transport of people, the fast travel time made it the best means of travel. For the transport of goods, trains were much more fuel efficient.

The transportation of people integrated all of India. For the communities privileged with rail access, the price of goods came down and the average wages increased when compared to parts of India that did not have railways. Moreover, prices stayed consistent for communities on the rail network. (Chaudhary p.3­4) In addition to speed and fuel efficiency, the rail was a safe means of travel. Safety rates were high even compared to Western countries and the statistics improved continuously.

The rail network necessitated standardized time. In 1905, the British implemented standard time across the empire. London insisted that standardize time proved the mantis of the entire imperial project as time is standard time is modern and retinal. The imperial government imposed standard time across the whole of India based on the twelve-hour clock. Standard time integrated India into the global economy.

1832–1852: Industrial railways
India's first railway proposals were made in Madras in 1832. The Red Hill Railway, the country's first train, ran from Red Hills to Chintadripet bridge in Madras in 1837. It was hauled by a rotary steam-engine locomotive manufactured by William Avery. Built by Arthur Cotton, the railway was primarily used to transport laterite stone for road-building work in Madras. In 1845, the Godavari Dam Construction Railway was built at Dowleswaram in Rajahmundry. Also built by Cotton, it supplied stone for the construction of a dam over the Godavari River.

On 8 May 1845, the Madras Railway was incorporated, followed that year by the East India Railway. On 1 August 1849, the Great Indian Peninsular Railway was incorporated by an act of parliament. The "guarantee system", providing free land and a guaranteed five-percent rate of return to private British companies willing to build railways, was finalized on 17 August 1849. In 1851, the Solani Aqueduct Railway was built in Roorkee. It was hauled by the Thomason steam locomotive, named after a British officer-in-charge of that name. The railway transported construction materials for an aqueduct over the Solani River. In 1852, the Madras Guaranteed Railway Company was incorporated.

1853–1924: Passenger railways and expansion
The country's first passenger train, which ran between Bombay's Bori Bunder station and Thane on 16 April 1853, was dedicated by Lord Dalhousie. The 14-carriage train was hauled by three steam locomotives: the Sahib, Sindh, and Sultan. Travelling 34 km, the train carried 400 people. The passenger line was built and operated by the Great Indian Peninsula Railway (GIPR). It was built in broad gauge, which became the country's standard for railways.

In May 1854, the Bombay–Thane line was extended to Kalyan with the Thane viaducts over the Thane creek (India's first railway bridges). The first passenger train in eastern India ran from Howrah (near Calcutta) to Hoogly, a distance of 24 mi, on 15 August 1854. The line was built and operated by the East Indian Railway Company (EIR). That year, the GIPR opened its first workshops in Byculla. In 1855, the BB&CI Railway was incorporated. That August, the EIR Express and Fairy Queen steam locomotives were introduced.

South India's first passenger train ran from Royapuram–Veyasarapady (Madras) to Wallajah Road in Arcot, a distance of 60 mi, on 1 July 1856. It was built and operated by the Madras Railway. The Madras Railway's first workshop opened in Perambur (near Madras) that year, and the Bombay-Thane line was extended to Khopoli. In 1858, the Eastern Bengal Railway was incorporated.

India's first tramway (a horse-drawn tramway) opened in Calcutta between Sealdah and Armenian Ghat Street, a distance of 3.8 km, on 24 February 1873. The following year, the Great South Indian and Carnatic Railways merged to form the South Indian Railway Company. On 9 May 1874, a horse-drawn tramway began operation in Bombay between Colaba and Parel. The Calcutta Tramways Company was incorporated in 1880, followed a decade later by the East Coast State Railway.

Lighting in passenger coaches was introduced by many railway companies in 1897. In 1902, the Jodhpur Railway was the first to introduce electric lighting as standard fixtures. Electric signal lighting was introduced between Dadar and Currey Road in Bombay in 1920.

1925–1950: Electrification and further expansion
The first railway budget was presented in 1925. On 3 February 1925, the first electric passenger train in India ran between Victoria Terminus (VT) and Kurla on 1,500 V DC overhead traction. Cammell Laird and Uerdingenwagonfabrik manufactured the locomotives for this train. The VT-Bandra section was electrified (with an elevated platform at Sandhurst Road), the Oudh and Rohilkhund Railway was merged with the EIR, the first railway budget was presented in the same year. In 1926, the Kurla-Kalyan section was electrified with 1,500 V DC. Electrification to Poona and Igatpuri (both 1,500 V DC) over the Bhore and Thal Ghats was also completed, and the Charbagh railway station in Lucknow was built that year. The Bandra-Virar section was electrified with 1,500 V DC in January 1928.

The Frontier Mail made its inaugural run between Bombay VT and Peshawar in 1928. The country's first automatic color-light signals became operational, on GIPR's lines between Bombay VT and Byculla. In 1928, the Kanpur Central and Lucknow stations opened. The Grand Trunk Express began running between Peshawar and Mangalore, the Punjab Limited Express began running between Mumbai and Lahore, and automatic color-light signaling was extended to the Byculla-Kurla section the following year. On 1 June 1930, the Deccan Queen began service (hauled by a WCP-1—No. 20024, old number EA/1 4006) with seven coaches on the GIPR's electrified route from Bombay VT to Poona. The Hyderabad Godavari Valley Railway was merged into Nizam's Guaranteed State Railway and the route of the Grand Trunk Express was changed to Delhi-Madras that year.

1951–1983: Zonal re-organization and further developments
The re-organisation of railways in India into regional zones began in 1951. On 14 April of that year, the Southern Railway zone was created. On 5 November, the Central and Western Railway zones were created. That year, the post of Chief Commissioner of Railways was abolished and the Railway Board adopted the practice of making its senior-most member the chairman of the board. The government of West Bengal also entered into an agreement with the Calcutta Tramways Company to take over its administrative functions that year. The Northern, Eastern and North Eastern Railway zones were created on 14 April 1952.

Fans and lights were mandated for all compartments in all classes of passenger accommodations in 1952, and sleeping accommodations were introduced in coaches. On 1 August 1955, the South-Eastern zone was split off from the Eastern Railway zone. A divisional system of administration was established for the zones in 1956, and the first fully air-conditioned train was introduced (between Howrah and Delhi).

In 1957, after successful trials in France, SNCF proposed 25 kV AC electrification for India's railways. Indian Railways decided to adopt 25 kV AC electrification, choosing SNCF as a technical consultant. The Main Line Electrification Project (which later became the Railway Electrification Project and, still later, the Central Organisation for Railway Electrification) was established that year. In 1958, the Northeast Frontier Railway zone split off from the North Eastern zone. In 1959, Raj Kharswan to Dangoaposi was the first section electrified with 25 kV AC traction. The first scheduled train using 25 kV AC traction ran on the Raj Kharswan-Dangoaposi section on 11 August 1960. The first containerized freight service began between Bombay and Ahmedabad in 1966, and 25 kV AC electrification of several suburban tracks around Delhi, Madras and Calcutta was completed. In 1979, the Main Line Electrification Project became the Central Organization for Railway Electrification (CORE).

1984 – present: Rapid transit and later developments
India's first metro train ran from Esplanade to Bhowanipur (now the Netaji Bhawan station) in Calcutta on 24 October 1984, and the Calcutta Metro was the country's first rapid-transit line.

In 1986, computerized ticketing and reservations were introduced in New Delhi. The Shatabdi Express, India's fastest train, was introduced between New Delhi and Jhansi in 1988; the line was later extended to Bhopal. In 1990, the first self-printing ticket machine (SPTM) was introduced in New Delhi. Air-conditioned, three-tier coaches and a sleeper class (separate from Second Class) were introduced in 1993.

On 16 January 1995, the first regularly-scheduled service with 2 x 25 kV traction began on the Bina-Katni line. In September 1996, the CONCERT system of computerized reservations began in New Delhi, Mumbai and Chennai. In 1998, coupon-validating machines (CVMs) were introduced at Mumbai CST. The CONCERT system became operational nationwide on 18 April 1999; the South East Central Railway zone was established and credit cards were accepted for tickets and reservations at some stations that year. In February 2000, the Indian Railways website went online. On 6 July 2002, the East Coast, South Western, South East Central, North Central and West Central Railway zones were created. Indian Railways (IR) began online train reservations and ticketing on 3 August of that year, with Internet ticketing extended to many cities on 1 December. On 5 February 2012, The Western Railway zone (WR) ended its use of 1,500 V DC traction, switching to 25 kV AC traction. The Tatkal system of ticketing was extended to all trains on 26 September 2013.

Gatimaan Express, India's fastest train with a maximum speed of 160 km/h, made its maiden journey from Delhi to Agra on 5 April 2016. The Central Railway zone (CR) ended its use of DC traction in the Mumbai area and on the country's main-line rail network, switching to 25 kV AC traction on 11 April of that year. On 31 March 2017, IR announced that India's entire rail network would be electrified by 2022.