Owned by Indian Railways Parking Yes Elevation 86 m Phone 096474 37948 Platforms in use 6 | Operated by Eastern Railway Address Andal, West Bengal 713321 Opened 1855 Owner Indian Railways | |
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Location Andal, West Bengal
India Line(s) Bardhaman-Asansol section
Howrah-Delhi main line
Howrah-Gaya-Delhi line
Howrah-Allahabad-Mumbai line
Andal-Sainthia branch line
Andal-Sitarampur branch line Structure type Standard (on ground station) Similar Durgapur railway station, Raniganj railway station, Asansol Junction railway st, Sitarampur railway station, Barddhaman Junction railway st | ||
Andal is a railway station on the Bardhaman-Asansol section. Andal-Sainthia branch line and Andal-Sitarampur branch line, both with numerous colliery siding, start from Andal. It is located in Bardhaman district in the Indian state of West Bengal. It serves Andal and the surrounding mining-industrial areas.
Contents
Mining-industry zone
"The entire belt between Durgapur (158 km from Howrah), and all the way up to Dhanbad and beyond is industrialized. Apart from factories, there are many coalmines, some closed now, and some with fires burning deep in the mineshafts. The mining area extends for a large area, mostly to the south of the tracks. Quite a portion of the track passes through cuttings, where the surrounding area is higher than the track level, resulting in the profusion of characteristic small masonry bridges crossing the tracks." This description is from "Gomoh loco shed and CLW trip record" by Samit Roychoudhury.
History
The first passenger train in eastern India ran from Howrah to Hooghly on 15 August 1854. The track was extended to Raniganj by 1855.
Electrification
The Waria-Asansol sector was electrified in 1960-61.
Loco shed
Andal has a dieslel loco shed. It houses WDS-6, WDM-2, WDM 3A and WDG-3A locomotives. The first WDM-2 manufactured by Diesel Locomotive Works is in Andal loco shed.
Andal Marshalling Yard
Andal Yard is one of the largest in Eastern Railway. Coal loaded at various colliery sidings are hauled to the yard by diesel locomotives. Coal is supplied in rakes to such thermal power plants as at Bakreshwar, Farrakka and Sagardighi. Substantial amounts of coal are dispatched to destination on Northeast Frontier Railway.
Andal railway colony
Here is an interesting description: "Andal is a railway town, consisting mostly of railway housing – in Indian terminology, the ‘railway colony’. Its commercial parts consist of a couple of dusty streets linked under the tracks by a long tunnel which, being unlit, has to be walked through by faith at night. The railway installations extend to a marshalling yard and a loco depot, all for coal traffic, since the through main line is served by the depot and the yards of Asansol a few miles west. Andal was home to wartime North American Mikados and older British 2-8-0’s plus some powerful tank engines for local passenger work."