Train of thoughts

As the Southern Railways celebrates its Golden Jubilee, GOPAL DALMIA tracks the significant milestones in its history. From various rail lines laid to important personalities involved in its upkeep, he goes back in time to recount the annals.

THE MADRAS Guaranteed Railway Co. was the first to begin work in the Southern part of India, under a contract dated December 22, 1852 with the Secretary of State for India.

The contract was specially designed to attract huge investment from England to develop the railways. The land was provided by the Government free of cost. And it guaranteed an interest of five per cent p.a. to be paid to the company on the capital, while the average rate of interest for loans did not exceed four per cent in England. The Government accepted to pay from its revenue the difference between the five per cent guarantee and the actual profit booked by the company. If and when the profits were larger than the amount payable on the guarantee, one-half of such excess was to be credited to the company; and the other half was to be applied firstly towards repayment of the interest paid by the Government over the years, to make up the deficiency in profits and then towards the liquidation of the debt itself. When the debt and interest had been paid off, the company was to take the whole of the surplus net receipts.

The Government had the option of buying the lines within six months after the first 25 years or first 50 years, the sum to be paid to the Company being the full amount of the value of capital stock and all shares, calculated on the mean market value in London during the preceding three years.

Lord Dalhousie, the Governor General from 1848 to 1856, was committed to Railway development. Advised by Major J. P. Kennedy, R.E., he established the basic plan that was to guide the early decades of railway development. In his famous 216-page "Railway minute" of April 20, 1853, he describes the plan for the trunk lines connecting major trade and administrative centres of the presidencies and provinces. For Madras Presidency he had planned a route from the city to be laid to the west coast with branches to Bangalore and the foot of the Nilgiris, while another line was to strike northwards through Cudappah and Poona to Bombay, thus creating a Madras to Bombay connection.

The first Railway was inaugurated from Bombay to Thane on April 16, 1853. Before the excitement of the Bombay inauguration could subside, the official sod-turning ceremony in Madras was arranged in June 1853. While the overall direction of the railway development was being determined, the work proceeded slowly. George Barclay Bruce was appointed the first Chief Engineer. Since he had experienced in Bengal the annoyance caused by feeble and incompetent contractors, he promoted the use of the departmental system.

In 1854 the Chief Engineer wrote: "The progress of the natives in learning to lay rails, under the tuition of Europeans, has been most satisfactory, and I am convinced that, when carefully directed and fairly remunerated, the natives of this country will be found quite able to perform many of those duties for which they are generally considered unfit."

Attractive, arched, masonry bridges were built in lime mortar on the first stretch between Madras and Goriattum across the rivers Cortillaur involving 26 arches, Poiney involving 56 arches, and, 24 and five arches over the two channels of the Goriattum. These bridges in stone serve to this day. It is unfortunate that millions of passengers travelling in the train over them cannot admire their beauty.

On July 1, 1856 the first 101 km from Royapuram (Madras) to Arcot (now known as Walaja Road) was inaugurated. The subsequent development was somewhat slow for a while; however, it picked up momentum later and the line was opened upto Jolarpet by May 23, 1860 and traffic opened upto Kadalundi (15 km from Calicut) on the East coast on May 12, 1862. A branch line from Jolarpet moved upto the Bangalore Cantonment on August 1, 1864, to fulfil the military requirements of the British. The line was extended 4.91 km to the city only on July 1, 1882. The Mettupalayam branch via Coimbatore to the foot of the Nilgiris was thrown open on August 31, 1873.

The North West line for connecting Madras to Bombay was taken-off from Arkonam in 1861, via Renigunta - September 15, 1862, Cuddapah - September 1, 1865, Tadpatri - September 1, 1868, Gooty - August 1, 1869, to Raichur - March 15, 1871. The 496.13 km from Arkonam to Raichur was covered in 10 years.

The Great Indian Peninsula Railway was laying the lines from the Bombay end. Taking off from Kalyan in 1856 via Khandala (Bhore Ghat), Poona, Dhond, Kurduvadi, Sholapur, Hotgi, Gulbarga, Wadi, it was completed upto Raichur on May 1, 1871, where the Madras railway had arrived 45 days earlier from the Madras end. The trunk line between Madras and Bombay was thus complete.

With these lines complete, The Madras Railway Co. had fulfilled more or less, their share of the original plans of Lord Dalhousie.

Since all the railway companies were guaranteed in a similar fashion, it led to the evil of extravagantly constructed lines. The average cost of Indian Railways, single line, had, upto 1869, reached about Rs. 170,000 per mile, while their average income was about three per cent, leaving the remaining two per cent to be borne by the tax-payer. Though this burden was noticed as early as 1861, it was during Sir John Lawrence's tenure of office, that he suggested in 1896 that all the future lines should be carried out by the Government. The policy was accepted and all extensions to the railway system for some years were carried out wholly and directly by the Government of India.

While this policy was in high favour and the guaranteed company enterprise was accepted to be unnecessarily onerous, one would expect the Government to take over their lines after the first 25 years under the provisions in the contract. But most unexpectedly, the Secretary of State for India took a step which appears to be utterly inconsistent and nearly inexplicable: he entered into negotiations with some companies without reference to the Government of India, to extend the life of these companies (including Madras Railway) for another 25 years in return for a certain concession on their part in the second contract.

As soon as the Government of India (in Britain) came to know of these intentions of the "Home Government", they sent an able and forcibly worded despatch pointing out their objections to such a course. Unfortunately, this reasoned protest came too late and the Secretary of State had made the new contracts.

Thus the share-holders of the company enjoyed an assured profit for another 25 years till the end of 1907. In this period they extended the line along the Malabar cost upto Mangalore by July 3, 1907.

The East Coast State Railway which was sanctioned in July 1890, was built by the Government. The Southern section of the line from Madras to Kottapalem near Vishakhapattinam was made over to Madras Railway after completion, for working from January 1, 1901, and the northern section to Bangal Nagpur Railway. Thus, Calcutta and Madras were connected by rail, by the beginning of the 20th Century.

His Highness the Maharaja of Cochin did not waste time. He got a Metre Gauge line laid from Shoranur to Ernakulam which was open to traffic on July 16, 1902. The line was the property of the Cochin Government and was worked by the Madras Railway Co. It was converted to Broad Gauge on October 24, 1934.

The contract having expired on December 31, 1907, The Madras Guaranteed Railway Co. was purchased by the Secretary of State for India. The northern lines were made over to Southern Maratha Railway Co. for working, the enlarged company being styled thereafter as the Madras and Southern Maratha Railway Co.

The southern lines from Jolarpet to Mangalore, including branch lines were similarly made over to the South Indian Railway Co. along with running powers over the Madras-Bangalore section.

Thus ended the goose that laid the golden eggs for 50 years, for the share-holders of the Madras Guaranteed Railway Company.

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