The Indian Branch Railway Company was formed in 1862 to build short

branch A branch, sometimes called a ramus in botany, is a woody structural member connected to the central trunk (botany), trunk of a tree (or sometimes a shrub). Large branches are known as boughs and small branches are known as twigs. The term '' ...

and feeder lines. It received no guarantee but was offered a 20-year subsidy. In the 1850s, it secured a guaranteed return. In 1863, it built the wide

narrow gauge A narrow-gauge railway (narrow-gauge railroad in the US) is a railway with a track gauge narrower than standard . Most narrow-gauge railways are between and . Since narrow-gauge railways are usually built with tighter curves, smaller structu ...

railway line between

Azimganj Jiaganj Azimganj is a city and a municipality in Murshidabad district in the Indian state of West Bengal. Geography Location Jiaganj and Azimganj- the two towns located on opposite sides of the Baghirathi River, Jiaganj (Ziaganj) on the eas ...

and Nalhati. The Azimgan–Nalhati line was taken over by the Government in 1872, as Nalhati State Railway. In 1867, it opened the wide metre gauge Kanpur–Lucknow branch line. It established a railway workshop at Alambagh in 1865 and another at Charbagh in 1867. Around 1872, it was merged into

Oudh and Rohilkhand Railway Oudh and Rohilkhand Railway was an extensive railway network in the North India, mostly north of the Ganges, starting from Benares and subsequently up to Delhi. History The Oudh and Rohilkhand Railway was formed in 1872 with the assets of ...

. Oudh and Rohilkhand Railway was subsequently merged with

East Indian Railway Company The East Indian Railway Company, operating as the East Indian Railway (reporting mark EIR), introduced railways to East India and North India, while the Companies such as the Great Indian Peninsula Railway, South Indian Railway, Bombay, Barod ...

in 1925.

Conversion to broad gauge

The railway lines were converted to broad gauge in 2017.

References

{{Railway lines in Eastern India 4 ft gauge railways in India Defunct railway companies of India Rail transport in West Bengal History of rail transport in Uttar Pradesh Railway companies established in 1862 Indian companies established in 1862