The Andal–Sainthia branch line is a railway line connecting

Andal Andal ( ta, ஆண்டாள்), also known as Kothai, Nachiyar, and Godadevi, was the only female Alvar among the twelve Hindu poet-saints of South India. She was posthumously considered an avatar of the goddess Bhudevi. As with the A ...

on the Bardhaman–Asansol section of the

Howrah–Delhi main line The Howrah–Delhi main line is a railway line connecting Delhi and Kolkata cutting across northern India. The railway line was opened to traffic in 1866 with the introduction of the "1 Down/2 Up Mail" train. Sections The long trunk line, ha ...

and

Sainthia Junction Sainthia Junction railway station is one of the oldest stations in India serves Sainthia city of Birbhum district in the Indian state of West Bengal. It is a "NSG-5" category railway station. The railway station is under the administrative contr ...

on the

Sahibganj loop The Sahibganj loop is a railway line connecting Khana Junction and Kiul Junction. Originally a part of the Howrah–Delhi main line, it was opened to traffic in 1866. With the construction of a shorter railway line for a part of the route, the ...

. This track is under the jurisdiction of Eastern Railway. This track passes through the north-eastern part of the Raniganj Coalfield in

Bardhaman district Bardhaman district (, ; also spelled Burdwan or Barddhaman or Vardhaman) was a district in West Bengal. On 7 April 2017, the district was bifurcated into two districts: Purba Bardhaman and Paschim Bardhaman district. The headquarters of the di ...

and the western part of

Birbhum district Birbhum district () is an administrative unit in the Indian state of West Bengal. It is the northernmost district of Burdwan division—one of the five administrative divisions of West Bengal. The district headquarters is in Suri. Other imp ...

in the Indian state of

West Bengal West Bengal (, Bengali: ''Poshchim Bongo'', , abbr. WB) is a state in the eastern portion of India. It is situated along the Bay of Bengal, along with a population of over 91 million inhabitants within an area of . West Bengal is the four ...

. This track serves Bakreshwar Thermal Power Station.

History

The Andal–Sainthia branch line was built in 1913.

Branch lines

There are two branch lines in this section. The first is the Andal–Barabani–Sitarampur section. The other is the Bhimgara–Palasthali branch line. Service on this line was suspended for safety reasons. The track became unfit because of unauthorized mining under the track.

Electrification

Electrification of Andal–Pandabeshwar section was completed in 2010–11. Electrification of the Pandabeshwar-Sainthia section was sanctioned in the rail budget for 2011–12, which is expected to be completed until 2013 and completed in 2016.

References

, {{DEFAULTSORT:Andal-Sainthia branch line 5 ft 6 in gauge railways in India Rail transport in West Bengal 1913 establishments in India Railway lines opened in 1913 Transport in Birbhum district Transport in Paschim Bardhaman district