Howrah Div turns 100, celebrates 171st anniv of eastern India’s first train run
Times of India | 23 April 2025
12 Kolkata: As the Howrah Division enters its centenary year in 2025, Eastern Railway is set to celebrate not just 100 years of the division's formation, but also 171 years of uninterrupted rail service from the iconic Howrah station — India's largest railway complex and a timeless monument.
Originally a site of an orphanage run by the Portuguese Dominican missionaries in the early 19th century, the land was acquired by the East Indian Railway (EIR) Company, setting in motion the transformation of this riverside location into a vital transportation hub. Historians believe that the first station began with a single platform and a humble red brick structure with a corrugated iron roof. Yet archival evidence, including Kalidas Moitre's 1855 treatise ‘The Steam Engine & the EIR', and the original Howrah Land Acquisition Plan, suggests that the original building may have been more spacious and columnar.
The station grew rapidly in response to increasing traffic and the strategic expansion of railway lines. The need for a new station became pressing with the arrival of the Bengal Nagpur Railway line. British architect Halsey Ricardo was commissioned to design a grand new building in Romanesque style. Construction began in 1901 and continued until 1911, resulting in a majestic structure with a sweeping public concourse, six platforms, and a façade that could be admired from across the Hooghly.
The design featured massive brick arches, symmetrical towers, and a dominating central dome. The northeast tower was crowned with a large clock, said an ER spokesperson. The current structure, which opened in 1905, remains a masterclass in blending architectural elegance with utilitarian function. Decorative stonework, high archways, and square towers lend it a historic charm, while the robust design ensured it could accommodate the growing passenger volumes of the 20th century.
Following the Indian govt's takeover of the East Indian Railway on Jan 1, 1925, Howrah was established as one of the six divisions of EIR — alongside Asansol, Danapur, Allahabad, Lucknow, and Moradabad. This reorganisation laid the foundation for the structured development of India's railway network.
Rowland McDonald Stephenson, the visionary behind EIR, earlier submitted a detailed engineering and traffic report to the East India Company, proposing a rail link between Calcutta and Mirzapore — a plan that would shape the future of rail transport in India.
Now, as the Howrah Division turns 100, Eastern Railway is preparing to honour this landmark with events and initiatives that reflect on the past and look ahead to the future.
"Howrah station is more than a transport hub — it's a living museum of Indian Railways, a symbol of progress, and a testament to the vision of those who laid its foundations nearly two centuries ago," said an Eastern Railway official.