Trains Archives - Holiday and Travel Guide to India

Overcrowding in Indian trains

Travelling by train is the best way to learn about India, its people, its culture, the villages, the smaller towns and the simple lives of the Indian people. A trip to India would not be complete without a train journey on the Indian railways.

However a traveller to India must be warned of the severe overcrowding in Indian trains. India has one of the biggest, the busiest and is the most connected rail networks in the world. With a population that is creeping towards 1.5 billion, it is no surprise that trains often runs overcrowded.

Overcrowded Indian train, Overcrowding in Indian trains — Overcrowded Indian train

How to book train tickets in India?

The Indian Railways constitute one of the largest rail networks in the world. The first passenger train in India left Mumbai (then Bombay) on 16 April, 1853 for Pune. The rail network in the country has come a long way since. Currently it employs over one-and-a-half million people, links 28 states and three union territories, operates over 6,000 locomotives running on more than 60,000 km long tracks spread across the country and ferrying over 10 billion people (more than the planet’s population) every year. This gigantic network offers an unmatched variety of trains – from notoriously crowded trains whose photos you often see on the web to cruise trains that offer an unrivalled luxury – and unique way to discover India.

Train surfing, India’s extremely stupid sport

After gaining popularity among teens practising extreme sports at the risk of their own lives in South Africa, Russia, Germany and other European countries; train surfing has arrived in India. Hanging outside the trains is not new to Indian citizens, as it is a necessity for them at times when the trains are overcrowded and next available train is not scheduled for hours. Train surfing is different in a way, that instead of hanging there with their hearts in their mouths, these youth treat it as wave surfing, skiing or bungee jumping and enjoy it to the fullest even at the cost of risking their own lives.

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