Railway System In India

In India, the introduction of the railways seems to be one of the most remarkable incidents that changed the course of history within the subcontinent. It is to always acknowledge that introduction of something relates to benefit a group as well as a detriment to another group of civilians. The same has happened with the introduction of railways in India. This study will successively cater to the initiation of the entire system of railways and its associated issues that were faced by the people of India in the 19th century. 

Overview of Railway System in India

Railway system in India is remarkable in the events of India’s history and that commenced successive connections to most parts. From the records, this communication supported British Raj in India to better exploit the subcontinent, thereby maximising their scale of profit. However, it seems that not only Britishers benefited, but also Indian people with better financial conditions. Therefore, it can be noticed that the introduction of the railways in India, did not benefit the Indian masses, but have worsened their conditions of living, by taking away their homes and lands that relate to the plans associated with development of railways.

Development of Railways in India during British Period

In order to promote notions associated with commercialization Britishers introduced railways in India. Earlier times it was quite difficult to transport the raw materials from one part of India to another. Furthermore, time taken to effectively transport these huge amounts of raw materials was much more and this delay in transportation led to problems in trade and product aspects for Britishers. In addition to these, the advent of steam engine technology led to the promotion of railways in India.

Reasons for the Introduction of Railways in India

Three major reasons are noticed for the successive developments of railways in British India are as follows.

• Effective transference of raw material from one part of India to another
• In order to make task easier
•  In order to make travel easier and comfortable

British Governor General Who Introduced Railways in India

From records, it is noted that “Lord Dalhousie” played the most important part in introducing railways in India. “Lord Dalhousie” was the “British Governor-General” during the 19th century from 1848 to 1856 and therefore referred to as “Father of Indian railways”.

Impact of Railways in British India

Immense impact was noticed for establishing railways in India that was not only evidenced by the Britishers as well as the Indians. The Britishers were beneficial in transporting goods from one to other parts of India. Moreover, it supports Britishers to establish their rule and control by making better connections with their parts. It also helped in building up industries in India that relate to better production of finished goods. This also led to a rise in the industries catering to products of jute, iron and steel as well as cotton. Furthermore, this led to economically strengthening of the economic conditions of the Britishers.

Major Problems Faced in Constructing Indian Railways

Several problems are noticed that led to hindrance in the infrastructure of railways in India and the major reason for this is the diversification that is acknowledged in the physical features. It was quite difficult to build proper rail tracks in lands with high elevations. Several socio-economic problems with land were also noted.

Conclusion 

In concluding the study, an overall idea is explored by delving into the topic of initiation of the system of railways in British India. Exploring the study, several causes for initiation of railways have been discussed, some of which are linked with the easy transferring of raw material to boost the trade on a massive scale by the Britishers. This further led to the involvement of immense profit by the Britishers mercantile classes and thereby massive growth in the economy of England. In this study, reasons, as well as effects, are discussed that lie behind the introduction of the railway system in India.