Bhopal Junction railway station

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Bhopal Junction railway station (station code: BPL) is a major railway junction of India and main railway station of Bhopal, the capital of the central Indian state of Madhya Pradesh. This station also serves as a connecting point for various pilgrims from Asia to visit the Stupa of Sanchi, an important Buddhist stupa, which is about 40 kilometres (25 mi) from this station.

Bhopal Junction
Rapid transit, Regional rail, Light rail & Commuter rail station
Bhopal railway station
General information
LocationBhopal Main Junction, Near Nadra Bus Stand, Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh
India
Coordinates23°16′02″N 77°24′47″E / 23.267212°N 77.412970°E / 23.267212; 77.412970
Owned byIndian Railways
Operated byWest Central Railways
Line(s)Agra–Bhopal section,
Bhopal–Nagpur section,
New Delhi–Chennai main line,
Ujjain–Bhopal section,
Bhopal–Ram Ganj Mandi line
Platforms6
Tracks9
ConnectionsTaxi Stand, Auto Stand
Construction
Structure typeStandard on ground
ParkingYes
AccessibleDisabled access Available
Other information
StatusFunctioning
Station codeBPL
Zone(s) West Central Railway zone
Division(s) Bhopal
History
Opened1889; 135 years ago (1889)
ElectrifiedYes
Passengers
60,000 Avg per day
Services
Preceding station Indian Railways Following station
Habibganj
towards ?
New Delhi–Chennai main line Nishatpura
towards ?
Sant Hirdaram Nagar
towards ?
Bhopal–Ujjain branch line Terminus
Location
Bhopal Junction is located in Bhopal
Bhopal Junction
Bhopal Junction
Location within Bhopal
Bhopal Junction is located in Madhya Pradesh
Bhopal Junction
Bhopal Junction
Bhopal Junction (Madhya Pradesh)
Map
Interactive map

Infrastructure

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The station has 6 platforms in addition to enough waiting halls, refreshment centre, passenger ticket counter and ticket vending machines, vehicle parking, communication facility, sanitary facility and dedicated Government Railway Police force to ensure security.[1]

History

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The Bhopal–Itarsi section of New Delhi–Chennai main line was opened in 1884. Jhansi–Bhopal section was opened in 1889. In 1895, the Ujjain–Bhopal section was opened.[2][3][4] The station building was constructed in year 1910.

In 1984, the station was affected by the Bhopal disaster, when toxic gas fumes from a nearby chemical plant leaked. In the station, staff, passengers, people fleeing the gases and other persons present died and were injured from inhaling these gases. Station staff still tried to alarm nearby stations not to send trains towards Bhopal. The station master made a stationary train, the Gorakhpur to Mumbai Express, leave immediately ahead of departure time to save the people on board.[5][6]

Services

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Bhopal Junction railway station is located on the main DelhiChennai route which halts more than 200 daily trains, with a total of more than 380 trains within a week. To the north of the Bhopal Junction lies Bina Junction, to the south lies Itarsi Junction. There is one track which connects Bhopal to the west with Ujjain Junction, Sehore, Shujalpur, Ratlam Junction and Ahmedabad Junction. Also to some portion of Indore Junction, Sehore, Shujalpur and Dewas Junction.

Development

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The Bhopal railway station has become the India's first railway station to have a sanitary napkin vending machine named as ‘Happy Nari’. The machine dispenses two sanitary napkins at the cost of ₹5 only and accepts ₹5 coins. The sanitary pads vending machine has been installed at platform No.1 by the Railway Women Welfare Association of Bhopal. The machine has the capacity of holding 75 sanitary pads. A specially trained female staff will refill the machine.

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See also

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Other railway stations serving Bhopal metropolitan area

References

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  1. ^ "BPL". indiarailinfo.com. Retrieved 14 November 2021.
  2. ^ "Section opening dates from History of Western Railways, Ministry of Railways" (PDF). Western Railway.
  3. ^ "IR History: Early Days – II". Chronology of railways in India, Part 2 (1870–1899). Retrieved 22 November 2013.
  4. ^ "Introduction". Nagpur Itarsi Route. Nagpur district authorities. Archived from the original on 10 April 2009. Retrieved 17 March 2014.
  5. ^ Pal, Sanchari (28 October 2016). "The Forgotten Stationmaster Who Saved Countless Lives During the Bhopal Gas Tragedy". The Better India. Retrieved 2 October 2022.
  6. ^ "Bhopal gas tragedy: An unsung hero who saved many lives". The Times of India. 4 December 2019. Retrieved 2 October 2022.
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