Rail transport in India consists of primarily of passenger and freight shipments along an integrated rail network. Indian Railways (IR), a statutory body under the ownership of the Ministry of Railways of the Government of India, operates India's national railway system. It is the primary owner and operator of rail operations throughout the country including suburban rail in major metros.
Indian Railways operates India's railway system and comes under the purview of the Ministry of Railways of Government of India. As of 2023, it maintains over 108,706 km (67,547 mi) of tracks and operates over 13,000 trains daily with a fleet of 14,800 locomotives. The railways primarily operates a fleet of electric and diesel locomotives along with a few compressed natural gas (CNG) locomotives. Steam locomotives are operated on mountain railways and on heritage trains.
The Buchli drive is a transmission system used in electric locomotives. It was named after its inventor, Swiss engineer Jakob Buchli. The drive is a fully spring-loaded drive, in which each floating axle has an individual motor, that is placed in the spring mounted locomotive frame. The weight of the driving motors is completely disconnected from the driving wheels, which are exposed to movement of the rails.
The Central Organisation for Railway Electrification (CORE) is the unit of Indian Railways responsible for electrification of the network. The organisation, founded in 1979, is headquartered in Prayagraj, Uttar Pradesh. Project units operate in Ambala, Bangalore, Chennai, Secunderabad, Lucknow, Ahmedabad, Jaipur, Danapur, and New Jalpaiguri.
Indian Railways operates India's railway system and comes under the purview of the Ministry of Railways of Government of India. As of 2023, it maintains over 108,706 km (67,547 mi) of tracks and operates over 13,000 trains daily. According to the Ministry of Railways, a route capable of supporting trains operating at more than 160 km/h (100 mph) is considered as a higher speed or semi-high speed rail line.
Dadar–Solapur section is part of the Mumbai–Chennai line. It connects Dadar and Solapur both in the Indian state of Maharashtra.
Solapur railway station is located in Solapur district in the Indian state of Maharashtra and serves Solapur city and the industrial belt around it. It is headquarters of Solapur Railway Division and a part of Central Railway zone.
The Mumbai–Chennai line, earlier known as Bombay–Madras line, is a railway line connecting Chennai and Mumbai cutting across southern part of the Deccan Plateau. It covers a distance of 1,281 kilometres (796 mi) across Maharashtra, Karnataka, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu. The Mumbai–Chennai line is a part of Diamond Quadrilateral.
The Winterthur universal drive or SLM universal drive was a drive for electric locomotives invented by Swiss engineer Jakob Buchli at Swiss Locomotive and Machine Works (SLM) in the 1920s.
The BTB E2E, also known as F 2/2 and De 2/2, were a pair of Swiss electric locomotives operated by Burgdorf Thun Bahn (BTB) in the early twentieth century. They are the oldest three phase locomotives designed for full service operation that have been preserved. The locomotives were built by Brown, Boveri & Cie (BBC) and Schweizerische Lokomotiv- und Maschinenfabrik (SLM) and entered service in 1899. They were powered by two 110 kW (150 hp) 750V AC electric motors which drove two axles. A two speed gearbox enabled the locomotives to travel at 18 km/h (11 mph) and 36 km/h (22 mph), the latter for passenger transport. The gearbox was later upgraded, raising the speed to 50 km/h (31 mph). Relegated to secondary duties when more powerful designs were introduced, the locomotives provided valuable service until 1930.
Rigid-framed electric locomotives were some of the first generations of electric locomotive design. When these began the traction motors of these early locomotives, particularly with AC motors, were too large and heavy to be mounted directly to the axles and so were carried on the frame. One of the initial simplest wheel arrangements for a mainline electric locomotive, from around 1900, was the 1′C1′ arrangement, in UIC classification.
The Indian locomotive class WAP-1 is a class of 25 kV AC electric locomotives that was developed in 1980 by Chittaranjan Locomotive Works for Indian Railways. The model name stands for broad gauge (W), AC Current (A), Passenger traffic (P) locomotive, 1st generation (1). They entered service in late 1981. A total of 65 WAP-1 were built at CLW between 1980 and 1996, which made them the most numerous class of mainline electric passenger locomotive until its successor, the WAP-4.
The Indian locomotive class WCG-2 is a class of 1.5 kV DC electric locomotives that was developed in the late 1960s by Research Design and Standards Organisation (RDSO) and Chittaranjan Locomotive Works (CLW) for Indian Railways. The model name stands for broad gauge (W), DC Current (C), Goods traffic (G) engine, 2nd generation (2). They entered service in February 1971. A total of 57 WCG-2 were built at CLW between 1978 and 1983, which made them the most numerous class of DC electric locomotive.
The Indian locomotive class WAM-1 was a class of 25 kV AC electric locomotives that was developed in the late 1950s by the Groupement 50Hz for Indian Railways. The model name stands for broad gauge (W), AC Current (A), Mixed traffic (M) locomotive, 1st generation (1). They entered service in 1960 thus making them India's first AC electric locomotive. A total of 100 WAM-1 were built by the European consortium between 1959 and 1961, which made them the most numerous class of mainline electric locomotive until the WAG-1.
The Indian locomotive class WCM-5 is a class of 1.5 kV DC electric locomotives that was developed in 1961 by Chittaranjan Locomotive Works (CLW) for Indian Railways. The model name stands for broad gauge (W), Direct Current (C), Mixed traffic (M) engine, 5th generation (5). The WCM-5 was the first locomotive of any type to be fully developed and built in India, entering service in 1961. A total of 21 WCM-5 locomotives were built at CLW between 1961 and 1963.
The Indian locomotive class WCG-1 is a class of 1.5 kV DC electric locomotives that was developed in the late 1920s by Vulcan Foundry and Swiss Locomotive and Machine Works (SLM for Indian Railways. The model name stands for broad gauge, Direct Current, Freight traffic engine, 1st generation. They entered service in 1930. A total of 41 WCG-1 was built at England between 1928 and 1929.
The Indian locomotive class WCM-1 is a class of 1.5 kV DC electric locomotives that was developed in 1954 by Vulcan Foundry and English Electric for Indian Railways. The model name stands for broad gauge (W), Direct Current (C), Mixed traffic (M) engine, 1st generation (1). They entered service in 1955. A total of 7 WCM-1 locomotives were built in England between 1954 and 1955.
The Indian locomotive class WCP-4 was a single-member class of 1.5 kV DC electric locomotive that was developed in late 1920s by Swiss Locomotive and Machine Works (SLM) for Indian Railways. The model name stands for broad gauge (W), Direct Current (C), Passenger traffic (P) engine, 4th generation (4). The locomotive was built at England between 1928 and 1929, and entering service in 1930.
The Indian locomotive class WCP-3 was a single-member class of 1.5 kV DC electric locomotive that was developed in late 1920s by Hawthorn Leslie for Indian Railways. The model name stands for broad gauge (W), Direct Current (C), Passenger traffic (P) engine, 3rd generation (3). The locomotive was built at England between 1928 and 1929, and entering service in 1930.
The Indian locomotive class WCP-2 is a class of 1.5 kV DC electric locomotives that was developed in late 1920s by Swiss Locomotive and Machine Works (SLM) for Indian Railways. The model name stands for broad gauge (W), Direct Current (C), Passenger traffic (P) engine, 2nd generation (2). They entered service in 1938. A single WCP-1 was built at England in 1938.
