The South Western Railway (SWR) is one of the 19

railway Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport that transfers passengers and goods on wheeled vehicles running on rails, which are incorporated in tracks. In contrast to road transport, where the vehicles run on a pre ...

zones in

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

, headquartered at

Hubballi Hubli, officially known as Hubballi, is a city in the Indian state of Karnataka. The twin cities Hubli–Dharwad form the second largest city in the state by area and population and the largest city in North Karnataka. Hubli is in Dharwad distr ...

Karnataka Karnataka (; ISO: , , also known as Karunāḍu) is a state in the southwestern region of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, with the passage of the States Reorganisation Act. Originally known as Mysore State , it was renamed ''Karnat ...

State. SWR was created from carving out the routes from Southern Railways,

South Central Railways The South Central Railway (abbreviated SCR) is one of the 19 zones of Indian Railways. The jurisdiction of the zone is spread over the states of Telangana, Maharashtra, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh. It has three divisions under its administrati ...

and

Central Railways Central Railway (abbreviated CR) is one of the 19 zones of Indian Railways. Its headquarters is in Mumbai at Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus. It has the distinction of operating the first passenger railway line in India, which opened from ...

in 2003.

History

The South Western Railway zone came into existence on 1 April 2003 by bifurcating Mysuru and Bengaluru divisions from Southern Railway along with Hubballi division from South Central Railway. It is headquartered at

and comprises three divisions namely

Mysuru Mysore (), officially Mysuru (), is a city in the southern part of the state of Karnataka, India. Mysore city is geographically located between 12° 18′ 26″ north latitude and 76° 38′ 59″ east longitude. It is located at an altitude of ...

, and

Bengaluru Bangalore (), officially Bengaluru (), is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Karnataka. It has a population of more than and a metropolitan population of around , making it the third most populous city and fifth most ...

. The fourth division at

Kalaburagi Kalaburagi, formerly known as Gulbarga, is a city in the Indian state of Karnataka. It is the administrative headquarters of the Kalaburagi district and is the largest city in the region of North Karnataka (Kalyana-Karnataka). Kalaburagi is 6 ...

was slated to be the fourth division which was supposed to be carved out from Hubli, Secunderabad, Guntakal and Solapur divisions. Currently the divisional office at Kalaburagi is on hold due to operational constraints.

Jurisdiction

South Western Railway covers most of the railway lines in the state of

and

Goa Goa () is a state on the southwestern coast of India within the Konkan region, geographically separated from the Deccan highlands by the Western Ghats. It is located between the Indian states of Maharashtra to the north and Karnataka to the ...

except the

Konkan Railway The Konkan Railway (abbreviated KR) is one of the 19 railway zones in India with its headquarters at CBD Belapur in Navi Mumbai, Maharashtra, India. The first passenger train ran on Konkan railway tracks on 20 March 1993, between Udupi and ...

line, parts of

Sri Sathya Sai district Sri Sathya Sai district is a district in the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. Its headquarters is at Puttaparthi. It was formed on 4 April 2022 from the Dharmavaram revenue division, Dharmavaram, Penukonda revenue division, Penukonda, Kadiri rev ...

and

Chittoor district Chittoor district () is one of the eight districts in the Rayalaseema region of the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. The district headquarters is located at Chittoor. It has a population of 4,170,468 according to 2011 census of India. It lies in ...

in Andhra Pradesh,

Krishnagiri district Krishnagiri district is one of the 38 districts (a district in the north western part) of the state of Tamil Nadu, in India. This district is carved out from Dharmapuri District by 2004. The municipal town of Krishnagiri is the district head ...

, parts of

Dharmapuri district Dharmapuri is one of the 38 districts in the state of Tamil-Nadu, India. It is the first district created in Tamil Nadu after the independence of India by splitting it from then-Salem district on 2 October 1965. Dharmapuri District is one of t ...

and

Tirupathur district Tirupattur district, or Tirupathur district, is one of the 38 districts in the southern Indian state of Tamil Nadu. The district was formed in 2019 by the division of Vellore district into three smaller districts. Its creation alongside Ranipet ...

of Tamil Nadu.

Divisions

* Bengaluru railway division * Mysuru railway division *

Hubballi railway division Hubballi railway division is one of the three railway divisions under South Western Railway zone of Indian Railways. This railway division was formed on 5 November 1951 and its headquarter is located at Hubli, Hubballi in the state of Karnataka o ...

* Kalaburagi railway division (Proposed and on hold)

Development

As of 10 November 2021, Out of of broad gauge route, a total of is electrified in the zone. The section between

–

( is doubled and electrified. The

Tumakuru Tumkur, officially renamed as Tumakuru, is a city located in the southern part of Indian state of Karnataka. Tumkur is situated at a distance of northwest of Bangalore, the state capital along NH 48 and NH 73. It is the headquarters of the ...

– Hubballi line is being doubled and electrified in patches. While Bengaluru – Tumakuru was doubled and opened to traffic in 2007, progress on other sections has been comparatively slow. The doubling of the

Birur Birur is a town located in Kadur Taluk in Chikkamagaluru district in the state of Karnataka, India. It belongs to Mysuru Division. It is located 41 km East from District headquarters Chikkamagaluru. It has an average elevation of 833 m ...

–

Chikjajur Chikjajur is a town in Karnataka. The town is served by a railway line. Chikjajur later emerged as the market centre for surrounding regions there. The town is known for the 500-year-old Temple of Lord Maruthi. See also *Hagalavadi * Gubbi * ...

section of the same line was completed in 2015 while the doubling of Tumakuru –

Arsikere Arsikere is a city and taluka in the Hassan district in the state of Karnataka, India. It is the second largest city in Hassan district, demographically. Arsikere city municipal council consists of 31 wards. This region is known for its cocon ...

and Hubballi –

Harihara Harihara (Sanskrit: हरिहर) is the fused sattvika characterisation of Vishnu (Hari) and Shiva (Hara) from Hindu theology. Hari is the form of Vishnu, and Hara is the form of Shiva. Harihara is also known as Shankaranarayana ("Shankara ...

sections are in progress. The doubling of

Yelahanka Yelahanka is now a suburb of Bangalore in the state of Karnataka and one of the zones of BBMP. It is the oldest part of present Municipal Bengaluru (Bangalore) city and is in the north of the city. It is Nadaprabhu Kempegowda I, of the Yelaha ...

–

Penukonda Penukonda also called Penugonda is a town in the Sri Sathya Sai district of Andhra Pradesh, India. It is 70 km away from Anantapur town. Demography According to ''The Imperial Gazetteer of India'', Penukonda was a subdivision and ta ...

section has been completed till Hindupur and the remaining section is still in progress. The Ballari – Hubballi line is completely doubled and electrified.

Gadag Gadag-Betageri is a city municipal council in Gadag district in the state of Karnataka, India. It is the administrative headquarters of Gadag District. The original city of Gadag and its sister city Betageri (or ''Betgeri'') have a combined cit ...

– Hotgi and Hubballi –

Pune Pune (; ; also known as Poona, (List of renamed Indian cities and states#Maharashtra, the official name from 1818 until 1978) is one of the most important industrial and educational hubs of India, with an estimated population of 7.4 million ...

line doubling is in progress with electrification. In the 2016 Railway Budget, the electrification of Bengaluru – Salem line via

Hosur Hosur is an industrial city located in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. Hosur is one of the municipal corporations in Tamil Nadu. It is located on the bank of the river River Ponnaiyar, southeast of Bengaluru and west of Chennai, the state ...

and

Dharmapuri Dharmapuri is a special grade town in the north western part of Tamil Nadu, India. It serves as the administrative headquarters of Dharmapuri district which is the first district created in Tamil Nadu after the independence of India by spli ...

was announced was completed in July 2021, doubling between Bengaluru and Hosur is in progress. In February 2017, the Bengaluru –

Hassan Hassan, Hasan, Hassane, Haasana, Hassaan, Asan, Hassun, Hasun, Hassen, Hasson or Hasani may refer to: People *Hassan (given name), Arabic given name and a list of people with that given name *Hassan (surname), Arabic, Jewish, Irish, and Scottis ...

railway line via

Shravanabelagola Shravanabelagola () is a town located near Channarayapatna of Hassan district in the Indian state of Karnataka and is from Bengaluru. The Gommateshwara Bahubali statue at Shravanabelagola is one of the most important tirthas (pilgrimage des ...

was completed. Construction of new railway lines such as Tumakuru –

Chitradurga Chitradurga is a city and the headquarters of Chitradurga district, which is located on the valley of the Vedavati river in the central part of the Indian state of Karnataka. Chitradurga is a place with historical significance which is locate ...

, Chitradurga – Davanagere, Tumakuru – Kadiridevarapalli, Hubballi – Belagavi via Kittur, Yalvigi – Gadag, Gadag –

Wadi Wadi ( ar, وَادِي, wādī), alternatively ''wād'' ( ar, وَاد), North African Arabic Oued, is the Arabic term traditionally referring to a valley. In some instances, it may refer to a wet (ephemeral) riverbed that contains water onl ...

, Ginigera –

Raichur Raichur (formerly Raichore) is a city and municipality in the district of Raichur in the Indian state of Karnataka. Raichur, located between Krishna and Tungabhadra rivers, is the headquarters of Raichur district. It is located 409 km fr ...

, Hubbali –

Ankola Ankola is a Town Municipal Council and a taluka in Uttara Kannada district of the Indian state of Karnataka. The name of the place is derived from a forest shrub Ankola grown on the coastal hill side and worshiped by the Halakki Vokkaligas a ...

Miraj Miraj (Pronunciation: iɾəd͡z ) is a city in Sangli District and also in Maharashtra, India, that was founded in the early 10th century. It was an important jagir of the Adil Shahi court of Bijapur. Shivaji Maharaj stayed in Miraj for ...

–

Bagalkote Bagalakote, is a city in the state of Karnataka, India, which is also the headquarters of Bagalakote district. It is situated on branch of River Ghataprabha about 481 km (299 mi) northwest of state capital Bengaluru, 410 km ( ...

, Hassan – Chikkamagaluru are either proposed, planned, under construction or partially open for service in phases.

Modernisation

The Mysuru Division of South Western Railways will be designated as "Digital Division" after fully adopting its current technology harnessing programme. The government of India had asked Railways divisions to cut red tape and reduce paperwork in offices. All the officials will adopt technologies like WhatsApp and Google Drive to share reports and other documents. This will save a lot of papers being used for circulating reports as done currently. Two web-based helplines have been launched so that digitised information can be shared among different officials. The inspection reports regarding maintenance, passenger amenities, cleanliness, electronics, and communication, etc. will be managed by a new software which is under construction now. These measures will cut down redundant works, reduce number of registers and reports maintained by officials, reduce paper consumption and improve the efficiency and celerity of operations.

Project Unigauge

Since 2007, the SWR is entirely

Indian gauge , a broad gauge, is the track gauge used in India, Pakistan, western Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Argentina, Chile, and on BART in San Francisco, United States. In North America, it is called Indian Gauge, Provincial, Portland, or Texas gauge. In Arg ...

. SWR has many

WDG4 The Indian locomotive class WDG-4 (EMD GT46MAC) is a freight-hauling diesel-electric locomotive with AC electric transmission designed by General Motors Electro-Motive Diesel in 1997–1998 for Indian Railways, where they are classed as WDG-4. ...

WAP-7 The Indian locomotive class WAP-7 is a class of 25 Volt, kV Alternating current, AC Electric locomotive, electric locomotives that was developed in 1999 by Chittaranjan Locomotive Works (CLW) for Indian Railways. The model name stands for 5 ft 6 ...

, WAG-9HC and

WDP-4 The EMD GT46PAC or WDP4 is a passenger-hauling diesel-electric locomotive with AC electric transmission designed by Electro-Motive Diesel, General Motors Electro-Motive Division and built by both GM-EMD and under license by Banaras Locomotive Wo ...

locomotives in use.

Routes

Express routes

Yesvantpur–Kacheguda Express The 16569 / 16570 Yesvantpur–Kacheguda Express is an Express train belonging to South Western Railway zone of Indian Railways that run between and in India. Background This train was inaugurated on 1 March 2014, Flagged off by Mallikarjun ...

, between and *

Yesvantpur–Latur Express Yesvantpur–Latur Express is an Express train belonging to South Western Railway zone of Indian Railways that runs between and in India. Background This train was inaugurated on 3 February 2018, an extension of Yesvantpur–Bidar Express fo ...

, between and * Rani Chennamma Express, between

Bangalore City railway station Krantivira Sangolli Rayanna - Bengaluru Station, commonly known as KSR Bengaluru station, Bengaluru City railway station or Bangalore City railway station (station code: SBC) is the main railway station serving the city of Bengaluru, Karnataka, ...

and

Yesvantpur–Shivamogga Town Express Yesvantpur–Shivamogga Town Express is an Express train belonging to South Western Railway zone of Indian Railways that run between and Shivamogga Town in India. Background This train was inaugurated on 16 January 2017, Flagged off by Sures ...

, between and Shivamogga Town * Yesvantpur-Pandharpur Express, between and Pandharpur railway station

Loco sheds

Diesel & Electric Loco Shed, Krishnarajapuram The Diesel & Electric Loco Shed, Krishnarajapuram is a motive power depot performing locomotive maintenance and repair facility for diesel locomotives and electric locomotives of the Indian Railways, located at Krishnarajapuram (KJM) of the So ...

* Diesel Loco Shed, Hubli

References

External links

South Western RailwayIndian Railways reservations
{{coord missing, Karnataka Zones of Indian Railways Rail transport in Karnataka 2003 establishments in India