Famous Railway Stations
Famous Railway Stations
Overview
Indian Railways has more than 7,500 stations. A handful of them are record-holders, heritage icons or gateways to mega-cities. Questions on their uniqueness (highest, longest, busiest, UNESCO, UNESCO-award, zonal HQ, tourist entry point, etc.) are asked every year in RRB NTPC, Group-D, ALP & RPF exams.
Key Facts & Figures
| Fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| 1. Busiest station (passenger volume) | Howrah (HWH) – 23 lakhs+ passengers/day |
| 2. Longest platform in India (as on 2025) | Hubballi (UBL) – 1,507 m |
| 3. World’s longest platform | Gorakhpur (GKP) – 1,366 m (held record 2013-23) |
| 4. Highest railway station | Ghum (GHUM) – 2,258 m (Darjeeling Himalayan Railway) |
| 5. UNESCO World Heritage hill stations | Darjeeling, Ooty, Shimla, Matheran |
| 6. First railway station of India | Bori Bunder (Mumbai) – 16 April 1853 (now CSMT) |
| 7. UNESCO World Heritage building | Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus (CSMT) |
| 8. Cleanest railway station (Swachh 2024) | Jaipur (JP) – 1st among divisional, Bhopal 1st among halt |
| 9. Highest booking station (PRS) | New Delhi (NDLS) – 4.8 lakh tickets/day |
| 10. Largest covered shed | Howrah (23 platforms) – 1.07 km long roof |
| 11. First ISO-9001 certified | Secunderabad (SC) – 1998 |
| 12. First all-woman managed | Matunga (Central Railway) – 2017 |
| 13. First with ‘moving concourse’ | Gandhinagar-Rajdhani (GNC) – 2021 |
| 14. Gateway to Kashmir | Banihal & Qazigund (after Banihal tunnel) |
| 15. Terminal for Vivek Express (longest run) | Dibrugarh (DBRG) – 4,218 km to Kanyakumari |
| 16. Highest stop for toy-train | Joginder Nagar – 1,189 m (Himachal) |
| 17. Model ‘energy-neutral’ station | Guwahati (GHY) – 2024 solar powered 100 % |
| 18. Deepest Indian station (u/c) | Charbagh underground (Lucknow metro-rail link) |
| 19. Only coastal UNESCO station | Thanjavur (TJ) – Great Living Chola Temples circuit |
| 20. Terminus for Palace-on-Wheels | Delhi Safdarjung (DSJ) |
Important Points (rapid-revision)
- Howrah – Largest station complex (23 platforms), ER HQ, 1854 opening.
- CSMT Mumbai – UNESCO 2004, Gothic architecture, headquarters of Central Railway.
- New Delhi – 16 platforms, 2nd busiest in ticket sales, Rajdhani/Shatabdi hub.
- Secunderabad – SCR HQ; first to get ISO-9001 (services).
- Chennai Central – SR HQ, 142-yr-old, 12 platforms, Dravidian façade.
- Kharagpur – 4th longest platform (1,072 m), SER HQ, railway staff college.
- Gorakhpur – NER HQ, held world record 2013-23 (1,366 m platform).
- Mathura – Only station with 7 junction routes (route mileage 2,458 km).
- Jaipur – NWR HQ, Pink-city entry, 1st to get 5-star ‘Eat Right’ tag.
- Vijayawada – BZA, SCR’s busiest junction, 10 lakh passengers/day.
- Itarsi – Diamond crossing, CR-WCR-SECR tri-section, freight hub.
- Mughalsarai/Pt. Deen Dayal – ECR’s largest marshalling yard, 8 km long loop.
- Nagpur – Geographic centre of Indian Railways, CR-SECR tri-junction.
- Guwahati – Gateway to NE, 1st 100 % solar ‘green’ terminal.
- Ahmedabad – WR HQ, 1st to install ‘water-purifier-cum-cooler’ on every PF.
Frequently Asked in Exams
- Which station has the longest platform in India at present?
- Headquarters of which zone is Howrah / Chennai / Mumbai (CR) / Secunderabad?
- UNESCO World Heritage railway stations of India.
- Highest (altitude) & cleanest (Swachh ranking) railway station.
- First ISO certified / all-woman managed / solar-powered / moving-concourse station.
Practice MCQs
(Attempt → expand for answer)
Question:01 The longest railway platform in India (as of 2025) is located at
A) Gorakhpur
B) Hubballi
C) Kharagpur
D) Howrah
Show Answer
Correct Answer: B
Explanation: Hubballi Junction in Karnataka holds the record for the longest railway platform in India, measuring about 1,507 metres, surpassing the previous record held by Gorakhpur.
Question:02 Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus (CSMT) has been declared a World Heritage Site by
A) UNO
B) Indian Parliament
C) UNESCO in 2004
D) Maharashtra Govt.
Show Answer
Correct Answer: C
Explanation: UNESCO inscribed Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus (formerly Victoria Terminus) on the World Heritage List in 2004 under criteria (ii) and (iv) for its outstanding example of Victorian Gothic Revival architecture blended with Indian elements.
Question:03 Where is the headquarters of East Central Railway (ECR) located?
A) Hajipur
B) Mughalsarai
C) Patna
D) Dhanbad
Show Answer
Correct Answer: A
Explanation: The headquarters of East Central Railway (ECR) is situated at Hajipur in Bihar.
Question:04 Which of the following is the busiest Indian railway station in terms of daily passenger footfall?
A) New Delhi
B) Howrah
C) Mumbai Central
D) Chennai Central
Show Answer
Correct Answer: B
Explanation: Howrah Junction consistently records the highest daily passenger footfall among all Indian railway stations, handling over 10 lakh passengers every day.
Question:05 Ghum railway station is famous for being
A) the coldest station on Indian Railways
B) the smallest station on Indian Railways
C) the oldest station on Indian Railways
D) the highest station (2,258 m) on Indian Railways
Show Answer
Correct Answer: D
Explanation: Ghum station on the Darjeeling Himalayan Railway is situated at an altitude of 2,258 m, making it the highest railway station in India.
Question:06 India’s first all-woman managed railway station is
A) Gandhinagar
B) Ajmer
C) Matunga (Mumbai)
D) Bhopal
Show Answer
Correct Answer: C
Explanation: Matunga (Mumbai) became India’s first railway station to be staffed and managed entirely by women, setting a benchmark for gender inclusivity in Indian Railways.
Question:07 The station that serves as the terminal for the longest running train (Vivek Express) is
A) Dibrugarh
B) Kanyakumari
C) Thiruvananthapuram
D) Silchar
Show Answer
Correct Answer: A
Explanation: The Dibrugarh–Kanyakumari Vivek Express (15905/15906) is Indian Railways’ longest-running train in terms of distance and time, originating from Dibrugarh in Assam.
Question:08 Which station was declared the cleanest in India in the Swachh Rail 2024 survey (divisional category)?
A) Jodhpur
B) Jaipur
C) Surat
D) Varanasi
Show Answer
Correct Answer: B
Explanation: In the Swachh Rail 2024 survey, Jaipur station was ranked the cleanest among divisional-category stations across Indian Railways.
Question:09 Which station became Indian Railways’ first to achieve 100 % solar energy neutrality in 2024?
A) Bhubaneswar
B) Kochuveli
C) Chandigarh
D) Guwahati
Show Answer
Correct Answer: D
Explanation: Guwahati railway station was declared Indian Railways’ first 100 % solar-energy-neutral station in 2024, powered entirely by its on-site solar plant.
Question:10 The headquarters of South Central Railway (SCR) is located at
A) Vijayawada
B) Hyderabad
C) Secunderabad
D) Guntakal
Show Answer
Correct Answer: C
Explanation: Secunderabad is the official headquarters of the South Central Railway zone.
BETA
