East Indian Railway: 1906 History of the EIR - Chapter III

Note: This is a sub-section of the East Indian Railway

The History of the East Indian Railway by George Huddleston. Published 1906 by Tracker, Spins and Co

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CHAPTER III. OPENING OF THE RAILWAY TO RAJMAHAL AND SUBSEQUENTLY TO DELHI - RETIREMENT OF MR GEORGE TURNBULL, THE FIRST RAILWAY ENGINEER IN INDIA - THE CONSTRUCTION OF THE CHORD LINE DECIDED UPON - UNEXPECTED GROWTH OF TRAFFIC, FOLLOWED BY COMPLAINTS OF WANT OF ADEQUATE FACILITIES.

ON the 4th July 1860, the first train ran through from Calcutta to Rajmahal, and on the 15th October following this section of the Railway was advertised as open to the public, the interval of the rains having been employed in putting the line into efficient order, and allowing the earthwork to settle and consolidate. "Great expectations," the Board said, "have been formed of the large traffic which will come upon this portion of the line, but the Board think it right to guard the shareholders against too sanguine an expectation that this traffic will appear simultaneously with its opening. It will certainly take time to draw it from its accustomed channels, and whilst no doubt there will at once be a very considerable apparent tonnage conveyed, it will principally be in the Company's own materials, the real trade of the country coming gradually, and until the advantages of railway transit are better understood in India, probably in the first instance somewhat slowly."

To commemorate the opening of the line as far as Rajmahal, the Government of India struck a large silver medal which was distributed to the principal officers engaged on the work. The following is a copy of the communication sent to one of the District Engineers employed on the work:—

FROM THE SECRETARY TO GOVT. OF INDIA. Public Works Department.

To GRAHAM PEDDIE, Esq., DISTRICT ENGINEER, East Indian Railway.

Sir, I commanded by His Excellency the Viceroy and Governor-General of India to transmit, for your acceptance, the medal struck by order of Government on the occasion of opening the East Indian Railway to the Ganges at Rajmahal. as being a memorable point attained in the construction of that great work, on which you have been employed.

I have the honour to be SIR, Your most obedient servant, H. YULE, Lieut.-Col., Secretary to the Govt. of India.

The Company bad now 249 miles at work in Bengal and 126 miles open for traffic in the North-West Provinces, and during the year 1860 the additional length of 87 miles from Cawnpore to Etawah, was opened to traffic. Certain considerations, however, rendered it desirable to postpone the construction of the Jubbulpore section and this part of the scheme was, for the time being, placed in abeyance.

During 1861, further sections of the line were opened for traffic, 72.5 miles in Bengal and 120.75 miles in the North-West Provinces, and by the beginning of 1862 the line was completed to Monghyr, so that the Company had at work 359.5 miles in Bengal and 243.75 miles in the North-West Provinces, or a total of 603.25 miles, and there was every hope that the whole of the main line would be completed by the end of 1862. In this year also it was determined to proceed with the construction of the Jubbulpore branch.

Throughout 1863 various sections of the main line were completed, but it was not until the 1st August, 1864, that the East Indian Railway was opened up to the banks of the river Jumna at Delhi. The delay was largely due to a question having been raised by Government as to the route the line should follow. In the words of the Board -

"The large bridge over the Jumna at Delhi was being rapidly pushed forward when the Government of India proposed that the line should proceed to Lahore, via Meerut and Saharanpur, instead of from Delhi, in a direct line to Ferozepore. Pending the settlement of this question, the principal works on this bridge have been temporarily suspended, because the arrangement now suggested might render it desirable to complete the bridge as a road bridge into Delhi instead of as a railway bridge. This alteration is undoubtedly of great advantage to the Company engaged on the Lahore line, and appears to have been originated by the Government for good and sufficient reasons but it has necessarily involved many serious considerations, which the Directors of this Company have, on public grounds, and in the interests of this Company, thought it right to submit to the Secretary of State."

The question was discussed at great length, but in the end the problem was solved by a compromise. It was agreed that the East Indian Railway should run into Delhi, and that the Punjab line should be constructed via Meerut and Saharanpur but that it should also have access to Delhi by running over a short section (12 miles) of the East Indian Railway from Ghaziabad.

Mr. Crawford, Chairman of the Board, in his address to the shareholders in April 1864 said that "It was a great gratification to him to state that the line from Calcutta to Delhi was open for traffic with the exception of the bridge over the Jumna at Allahabad. They could now take passengers over their line from Calcutta to Delhi and vice versa a distance of 1,020 miles. He thought everyone must admit that notwithstanding the various difficulties and obstructions thrown in their way from time to time, the progress they had made was very satisfactory. They could not compare the work on any line in England, either for magnitude or length of continuous line, with their East Indian line. There was not a line on any part of the Continent to compare with it. Even the Grand Trunk line of Canada could not compare with it as to works, progress or length of line. The completion of the works at the Delhi end of the line had been impeded by considerations as to route and in respect of the point of junction with the Punjab line. The original course of the line had been altered by the Government and it was now to go, through the centre of the Doab between two rivers, in the direction of Delhi. The Punjab line had also been altered so that both lines should enter Delhi. These alterations in route had caused great delay in finishing the third great bridge, involving considerable expense to the Company. The works on the Jubbulpore line were proceeding satisfactorily, and there was every reason to believe that the line would be completed by 1866. From information they had received, there was no doubt the works would be completed on the Jubbulpore line to its junction with the Bombay Railway at Jubbulpore and be ready for exchanging traffic with the Great Indian Peninsula Company when they could meet them with their line."

At this period the construction of the present main or Chord Line was already under consideration, several alternative routes had been surveyed and Government was being pressed to sanction the adoption of one of them. The great advantage of the Chord line was that it would shorten the distance for carrying "through traffic" by nearly 100 miles and save the expense of doubling the circuitous route via the Loop or then Main line.

In the meanwhile, the Government was full of appreciation of the results already attained. On the 25th August, 1863, the Secretary to the Government of Bengal, Railway Branch, wrote to the Secretary to the Government of India:-

"With reference to the results shewn in the Revenue Account of the East Indian Railway for the last half year, which have been prominently noticed in the note submitted to the Government of India, I am instructed to state that the Lieutenant-Governor desires to express the gratification with which he regards the successful issue of the operations of the season. The vast amount of traffic, both in passengers and goods, which has been attracted to the Railway during the first six months of its opening to Benares, notwithstanding the novelty of the undertaking, the necessarily imperfect nature of the station accommodation, the inexperience of the establishments and the insufficient available means, both of locomotion and transport, reflects, in His Honor's opinion, the highest credit on the Company's officers, especially those of the Traffic Department, with Mr. Batchelor at their head, and holds out an almost certain promise that the Railway in a short time will not only become independent of the guarantee and yield a profit in excess of 5 per cent. to the shareholders, but may conduce beyond all former expectation to the wealth and improvement of the country, and to the strength and financial prosperity of the Government."

Previous to this the Viceroy, Lord Elgin, had personally gone over the line from Calcutta to Benares, and we must not omit to notice the following extract from the official Gazette, in which is recorded what he observed on his journey, and his appreciation of the work done by the Company's Chief Engineer in Bengal, Mr. George Turnbull, who, after thirteen years laborious duty, found that his health would no longer permit him to give the Company the benefit of his services, and was about to leave India. The Board, in referring to the acknowledgment by Government of Mr. Turnbull's unique services, remarked that:—

"Gratifying as any such tokens of respect would doubtless be to Mr. Turnbull, they will be nothing as compared with the reward he will find in the contemplation of the kindly feelings with which future ages of India Will unquestionably regard the name of the man whose genius planned and whose indomitable courage and perseverance have carried out the magnificent series of works entrusted to his care."

Extract from "Official Gazette.

"Benares, February 7th, 1883.— H. E. the Viceroy on his arrival at this city desires to congratulate the officers of the East Indian Railway Company and the public on the completion of the additional section of the Grand Trunk line of Railway, from Calcutta to the North-West Provinces, that has been recently opened to Benares, and on the prospects of the early opening of the whole line for traffic up to Allahabad and Delhi.

2. The distance from Calcutta by rail to Benares is 541 miles. Work was begun in 1851. The line to Burdwan was opened in February 1855; to Adjai in October 1858; to Rajmahal in October 1859; to Bhagulpore in 1861; to Monghyr in February 1862, and to opposite Benares in December 1862. In ten years therefore have been opened (including branches) a continuous length of 601 miles, being at the rate of 60 miles a year. This is exclusive of the portion of the line already finished between Allahabad and Agra in the North-West Provinces, and of the sections from Agra and Allyghur, which it is expected will be ready in a few weeks. Including this length, the progress of the East Indian Railway has not been short of ninety miles a year - a rate which, if it has not come up to the expectations first entertained is, under all the circumstances of the case, satisfactory as regards the past and encouraging as regards the future.

3. On his journey from Calcutta to Benares H. E. observed, with much interest, the numerous striking works that have been so successfully constructed on this Railway by the Company's engineers, and viewed with particular admiration the great girder bridge over the Soane, which, it is believed, is exceeded in magnitude by only one bridge in the world. The smaller girder bridges over the Hiul and Hullohur, the heavy flood arching in the vicinity of these rivers, the masonry bridges over the Adjai and More and the Monghyr tunnel, also attracted the attention of H. E. the Viceroy, as works of more than ordinary difficulty designed and carried out with signal ability.

4. H. E. the Governor-General gladly accepts this opportunity of acknowledging the services rendered by the officers of the Railway Company in the prosecution of this great work; and of expressing more specially the strong sense he entertains of the high engineering skill and the steady devotion to his duties exhibited by Mr. George Turnbull, the Chief Engineer of the Company in Bengal, who, in a few days, will give up the direction of the works which he has now seen completed. Although not in the immediate employment of the Government, Mr. Turnbull has, in the opinion of H. E, well earned the expression of the thanks of the Governor-General for his professional services. which have, indeed, been rendered as much to the public as to the Railway Company. In all Mr. Turnbull's dealings with the officers of the Government, he has invariably shewn that moderation and desire to conciliate, which were essential for the harmonious and successful carrying on of the railway works, under the peculiar conditions imposed by the terms of the Government guarantee; and the Governor-General has much satisfaction in signifying, on behalf of the Government of India, his high estimation of the manner in which all Mr. Turnbull's relations with the Government have been conducted.

5. H. E. the Viceroy will not fail to bring to the favourable notice of H. M.'s Government the long and excellent services of Mr. Turnbull, who, having been the first Railway Engineer employed in India, has now happily seen the portion of this great work on which he was more particularly engaged brought to a close, after many years of arduous and persevering labour, under circumstances of unusual difficulty, with the most complete satisfaction to his employers and to the Government, and with the highest credit to himself.

(SD.) [Richard Strachey|R. STRACHEY]], Lieut-Col., R.E., Secretary to the Government of India with the Governor-General.

Mr. Turnbull had encountered and overcome various difficulties. Besides the magnitude of the works, the construction of a railway was a novelty in India and a practical knowledge of the country, the people, and their language had to be acquired. The native had to be trained to accomplish tasks entirely foreign to anything he had seen or heard of before and the wonderful adaptability which enabled him to carry out, under European guidance, the construction of a railroad was in itself an indication that he would afterwards be able to take charge of its stations and goods sheds, maintain its permanent way and buildings, construct its engines and rolling stock, work its telegraph and carry out, often under the most trying circumstances and contending against all manner of difficulties, every kind of duty that would be likely to be required of him.

In the early progress of the work the engineers were much impeded by the Sonthal insurrection, and the importation of labourers from Nagpur and other distant parts became a necessity. The unhealthiness of some parts of the country, especially about the base of the Rajmahal hills, was the cause of great delays, while from Monghyr upwards the effect of the Indian Mutiny was to throw back progress for nearly two years. The circumstances of the route having been taken along the banks of the Hooghly, the Bhagarathi and the Ganges made it necessary to cross all the affluents of those great rivers, involving large bridges and extensive viaducts, besides embankments of unusual length and size, and if any pioneer of railway construction deserves a memorial to his name it is Mr. George Turnbull.

Mr. Turnbull was succeeded by Mr. Samuel Power who had been Superintending Engineer of the Soane bridge. At this time the line had three Chief Engineers; Mr. Turnbull had been Chief Engineer of the Bengal Division, Mr. George Sibley was Chief Engineer of the North-West Provinces, and Mr. Henry P. Le Mesurier was Chief Engineer of the Jubbulpore line. On the opening of the line to Delhi Mr. Sibley also received the thanks of Government.

By 1864 the traffic of the East Indian Railway had fast outgrown the facilities for dealing with it; stock could not be constructed fast enough to carry the traffic but, as the Board explained, "there was no blame for deficiency in rolling stock or other matters that could be laid to the Board. They had sent out a large quantity of material, including ironwork for carriages and wagons; but the workshops and factories had been unable to supply the carriages fast enough." It is curious to read now of stock difficulties so far back as 1864; the same cry had been heard ten years before then and has continued to the present time. But it was not only in regard to shortage of wagons that there was, even in those early days, difficulty in dealing with the traffic offering. Then, as now, the terminal facilities were totally inadequate. In his report for the first half of 1864 Mr. Power, Chief Engineer, Bengal Division, remarks:—

"It is to be regretted that no improvement has taken place in the terminus at Howrah, where, at this season, it is distressing to witness the general embarrassment of the traffic and the destruction of cotton, grain and other property, arising principally from the want of accommodation at this station, from whence confusion appears to be propagated over all the line. • • • The heavy expenditure on permanent goods sheds, formerly proposed, would not be expedient now, when the establishment of a great metropolitan station in Calcutta is under discussion,"

While the Board said:—

"At present the terminus of the line was at Howrah opposite Calcutta, but everybody said the proper place for the terminus was in Calcutta itself, and it was proposed that the East Indian line should be brought across the Hooghly, by a bridge at a point about two miles above Calcutta, and thus be brought into the city itself, and there form junctions with two other Railways. The capital required for this purpose was about £1,000,000."

The question of bridging the Hooghly and constructing a terminus in Calcutta was jointly considered by Mr. A. M. Rendel, the Company's Consulting Engineer, and Mr. Power, who in 1865 reported as follows:—

"It can hardly be expected that the community of Calcutta should be contented with their present means of access to the Railway, and it has long been foreseen that as soon as the value of railway communication in India was established, a demand would be made for a more perfect connection with the capital. As far back as 1854, the subject was referred by the then Government of India to the late Mr. Rendel. During the Mutiny, and for a few years subsequent to it, the attention of the public was otherwise occupied, but early in 1882 Mr. Turnbull, by the direction of the Government, prepared plans for a bridge over the Hooghly, near Pultah Ghat. In the early part of last year the Eastern Bengal Railway Company proposed to connect their line with the East Indian by a bridge 30 miles above Calcutta. This scheme would have had the effect of transferring to the Eastern Bengal the whole of the East Indian through traffic for the same length. It was therefore opposed by the Board and ultimately rejected by the Government of India, apparently on the ground that, in the interest of the public, the bridge should be placed as near as possible to Calcutta, and should be a part of the East Indian Railway system. Finally, towards the close of last year, a Committee was appointed in India by the Governor-General to investigate the question in connection with the improvement of the port generally. The Board are in possession of the evidence taken before the Committee and the report which they have had based upon it. It is sufficient here to say that we fully agree with the Committee in regard to the necessity for the bridge and terminal station in Calcutta, also in regard to the site selected for them. We have reason also to believe that the Government of India entertain a similar opinion; and however much the Board may desire to avoid so important an increase of the Company's responsibilities, yet if it is offered to them under the usual guarantee, they cannot, in our opinion, if they would be uncontrolled in the use of their access to Calcutta, refuse to undertake it."

Further reference will be made to this proposal of bridging the Hooghly and constructing in Calcutta a central station. Suffice to say for the present that we know what has actually been done. The Hooghly has not been bridged in the immediate vicinity of the city, except by a floating roadway and there is no central station. The East Indian Railway crosses the river about 25 miles North of Calcutta and runs on the metals of the Eastern Bengal Railway to the Kidderpore Docks, on the southern outskirts of the city, and the idea of bridging the Hooghly and constructing a central station is apparently further off accomplishment than it was in 1864.

Other schemes for improving facilities of transport were however being also considered and notably the construction of the chord line from Raneegunge to Luckieserai on the Ganges. This scheme was strongly supported by Mr. Rendel on the around that it would save doubling the Loop line between Khana and Luckieserai, a distance of 252 miles, it would have the effect of bringing the coalfields 200 miles nearer the centre of the Company's system, thus benefiting not only the Company but the public, and it would greatly shorten the distance between Calcutta and the North-West Provinces, the more material point being that it would place Allahabad, where the traffic of the North-West Provinces would diverge to the east or west, in a position that would go far to counterbalance the advantage which Bombay has been assumed to possess over Calcutta as a shipping port.

The arguments in favour of the chord line were such as could not be controverted and the scheme was carried. I do not think that at the present day any better arguments could be advanced in favour of the grand chord line now under construction. The position at the time was that the single line via the loop could not carry the traffic offering, in fact it was the general opinion that it could not carry sufficient traffic to earn more than a net revenue of 5 per cent. Therefore the question to decide was whether this single line, traversing a round about route should be doubled, or whether a new line by a shorter route should be constructed. The decision was in favour of the shorter route, but in the meantime considerable pressure was put upon the Secretary of State and the Board to double the loop or old line, as well as to construct the new route via the chord. The Government of India and the Bengal Chamber of Commerce both urged upon the Secretary of State the necessity for this being done, but the Board shared the opinion of their chief engineer, Mr. Power, that such a course was quite unnecessary and eventually the Secretary of State accepted the views of the Board. That these views were correct is proved by the fact that up to the present time the loop line remains single and fully meets traffic requirements.

The work of constructing the chord line was exceedingly slow and it was not opened for public traffic until the 1st January 1871, although the centre line had been set out by the engineers early in 1865. It is true that the country is broken and difficult and that the thick jungle necessitated very close examination to select the best ground, but after all this had been done there were great difficulties with the contractors who had taken up the work of construction and it was on this account that the chief delay occurred.

The bridge over the Jumna at Allahabad was opened for traffic on the 15th August, 1865. It had taken nearly 8 years to construct and its completion was a subject for much congratulation; it was the middle link in the long chain of unbroken communication established by the East Indian Railway, for the first time in the history of India, between the right bank of the Hooghly at Calcutta and the left bank of the Jumna at Delhi. Mr. Sibley, the Chief Engineer of the North-West Provinces and Messrs. Collett and Donne, the District and Assistant Engineers and the subordinate staff under them received the thanks of Government and the encomiums of the Board.

The only remaining works of construction now in hand were the bridge across the Jumna at Delhi together with the station arrangements in that city, the Jubbulpore branch and the chord line with its branch to the Giridih collieries. It was also decided to double part of the line, which was then all single with the exception of the Burdwan-Howrah section.

The Jumna bridge at Delhi was opened for traffic in 1866, this was the last of the great bridges and its completion meant in the words of Mr. Crawford, the Chairman of the Board, that "a passenger starting from Calcutta could cross the river in one of the Company's ferry boats to their present terminus at Howrah and from thence, by one of the Company's trains proceed to the city of Delhi in the same carnage over the whole distance."

The Jubbulpore branch was not completed and opened for traffic before the 1st June, 1867, but prior to this date a temporary coach service was established between Jubbulpore and Nagpur, the then terminus of the Great Indian Peninsular Railway, so that passengers were able to proceed from Calcutta to Bombay and vice versa, the journey from Calcutta occupying about five days and the cost being Rs. 231-2-6. Rather different to the ordinary first class fare of Rs. 91-11-0 now in force.

A word as to the growth of traffic is now desirable. For the first time in the history of the undertaking, the net earnings during the half year ended the 30th June, 1866, enabled a dividend to be declared, exceeding the guaranteed interest of 5 per cent., the additional dividend was at the rate of 1/2 per cent. and so within 12 years of the opening of its first section, the corner was turned in which the Railway began to earn something beyond what the Government had guaranteed to the shareholders.

In a previous chapter the annual net earnings were given to the end of 1859, and continuing this we find them to have been during the next seven years:—

• 1860 - £211,680 14s 10d
• 1861 - £263,025 1s 9d
• 1862 - £269,406 10s 5d
• 1863 - £439,964 9s 3d
• 1864 - £625,894 12s 4d
• 1865 - £928,751 1s 11d
• 1866 - £1,119,315 6s 2d

In 1859, under a million and a half passengers were carried, in 1886 the number had risen to considerably over four millions, while the weight of goods and minerals lifted had, in the same period, risen from 299,424 to 802,043 tons. In the working expenses however there was very little improvement; standing at 44.85 per cent. of the gross earnings in 1859 they had only been reduced to 44.34 per cent. in 1866.

The growth of traffic had, as previously indicated, been far beyond the most sanguine expectations and considerable dissatisfaction was expressed by the public at the inadequate facilities provided by the Railway. In his address to the shareholders on the 29th June, 1866, Mr. Crawford referred at some length to the complaints made. He said –

"The subject of traffic naturally suggests to me the complaints which have been made in India during the last four months with respect to the management of our line. And upon that I must say that while, undoubtedly, a single line has not been found equal to the conveyance of the traffic of that part of India which it serves, so efficiently as. we should desire, still I am bound to say that I cannot accept on the part of the Company any blame in consequence. It was not at all unreasonable to expect that when the line was completed throughout, the traffic of that part of India would be brought on our line, in a great degree deserting the old modes of conveyance, whether by road or by river. But it would have been, I apprehend, an unwise policy on our part to have anticipated that event to the fullest extent, even if we had the means to do so, because if any disappointment had ensued, then I think, the Directors would have been fairly chargeable with something approaching to rashness if they had embarked your money in an unnecessary outlay."

Such was the explanation of the Chairman of the Directors, and from it, if from nothing else, the fact clearly stands out that the traffic to be carried far exceeded all anticipations. The Railway in short was quite unprepared for the demands made upon it, but considering the expenditure that improvements of facilities would have involved, caution was needed and the Directors could not be blamed for exercising caution or for taking time to consider and examine what was best to be done. The merchants of Calcutta held a meeting at which some resolutions were passed, first "That no check of any kind should be placed on the supply of rolling stock till the requirements of the traffic are satisfied." Secondly "That the line should be doubled throughout its entire length with as little delay as possible." Thirdly "That by means of a bridge over the Hooghly at Calcutta, the terminus of the line should be transferred from Howrah to the metropolis, and if possible, to some central position which shall form a terminus common to all lines entering this City."

Now it would have cost probably six millions sterling to double the line throughout and to add such a supply of stock as would meet all the requirements of the busiest season and the interests of the shareholders had to be considered - but apart from this it would not have been possible at the time to raise in London so large an amount of additional capital. Therefore the Board had to add to the facilities by degrees. Over 99 per cent. of the capital of the hast Indian Railway had been subscribed in London and the Chairman held the opinion that it was not quite reasonable that merchants in India should expect other people to find an unlimited amount for the purpose of enabling the Railway, upon an emergency, to meet every possible demand made upon it. "But," he added, "with a great traffic existing, with the certainty before us that the traffic when fully developed will be sufficient to pay a very large return, even as a double line, I have no doubt whatever, that our policy of gradually doubling the line at convenient places, from time to time, and as gradually stocking it, will answer all the just expectations that can be entertained of us."

At this time the line was about to be doubled from Luckieserai, where the Chord and Loop lines met, as far as Allahabad and arrangements had been made for the supply of no less than 215 additional locomotives. In addition to this the rolling stock was being materially added to, so that the Board of Directors were doing all that could well be expected of them and were by no means asleep to the position.

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