Explanation : Two new railway companies, Great Indian Peninsular Railway (GIPR) and East Indian Railway (EIR), were created in 1853-54 to construct and operate two ‘experimental’ lines near Bombay and Calcutta respectively. The first train in India had become operational on 22 December, 1851 for localized hauling of canal construction material in Roorkee. A year and a half later, on 16 April, 1853, the first passenger train service was inaugurated between Bori Bunder in Bombay and Thane. Covering a distance of 34 kilometres, it was hauled by three locomotives, Sahib, Sindh, and Sultan. ....Read more