North Western State Railway


The North Western State Railway was formed in January 1886 from the merger of the Scinde, Punjab & Delhi Railway, the Indus Valley State Railway, the Punjab Northern State Railway, the eastern section of the Sind–Sagar Railway and the southern section of the Sind–Pishin State Railway and the Kandahar State Railway.

History

The military and strategic concerns for securing the border with Afghanistan were such that, Francis Langford O'Callaghan was called upon for a number of demanding railway projects, surveys and constructions in the Northwest Frontier. What initially started off as military and strategic railway project, ended up becoming part of the North Western State Railway network upon its formation in 1886. The Bolan Pass railway was completed in 1886 and in 1887 the Khawaja Amran Railway Survey included the Khojak Tunnel and the Chaman Extension Railway. The Khojak Tunnel opened in 1891 and the railway reached Chaman near the Afghan border. By 1905, it was the longest railway under one administration and the strategic railway of the entire Northwest frontier. In 1947, much of the North Western State Railway fell in Pakistan territory domain became part of the Pakistan Western Railways, while railways in Indian territory became incorporated into the Eastern Punjab Railway.

Mergers

The North Western State Railway network was formed by merging several major and minor railways together. These included:

Major railways absorbed

The North Western State Railway undertook a major railway expansion program, which included: