The history of the Indian Railway began in 1832 with the proposal to construct the first railway line in India at Madras. In 1837, the first train ran on Red Hill railway line between Red Hills and Chintadripet in Madras and was hauled by a rotary steam engine imported from England. In 1852, a steam locomotive imported from England was tried at Byculla. In 1853, the first passenger train ran between Bombay and Thane. It had 14 carriages hauled by three steam locomotives: the Sahib, Sindh and Sultan. In 1877, an Ajmer built F-1/734 steam locomotive became the first indigenously built locomotive in India. In 1925, the first electric train ran between Bombay and Kurla, hauled by a Swiss Locomotive and Machine Works (SLM) 2,400hp (1,800kW) electric locomotive on 1500 V DC traction. The first diesel locomotive used in India was fabricated by North British Locomotive Company in 1954. During industrialisation in the colonial era, India also imported some[quantify] used locomotive engines from other countries.[citation needed]
Chittaranjan Locomotive Works, commissioned in 1950, was the first locomotive manufacturing unit in India. Banaras Locomotive Works, commissioned in 1961, is the second locomotive manufacturing unit operated by Indian Railways. In the 1960s, Integral Coach Factory-Chennai (ICF) started developing self-propelled electric multiple units for short-haul and local routes. BHEL and Patiala Locomotive Works, established in 1981, also manufacture locomotives in India. In 2015, the first compressed natural gas (CNG) powered trains were rolled out by ICF. In 2018, a semi-high speed self-propelled train-set capable of reaching speeds of over 160km/h (99mph) was rolled out from ICF. As of 2025[update], Indian Railways maintains over 108,706km (67,547mi) of tracks and operates over 15,000 passenger and 10,000 freight trains daily with a fleet of over 17,000 locomotives. As of October 2025, Indian Railways had 13,035 electric and 4,165 diesel locomotives amongst others.
Locomotives are classified by track gauge, motive power, function, power rating and model in a four- or five-letter code. The locomotives may be Longer Hood Front (LHF), where the driver cabin is behind the hood of the engine or Short Hood Front (SHF), where the cabin is located towards the front.
Locomotive classification and number displayed on a locomotive; WDM3A indicates broad gauge (L1), diesel (L2), mixed use (L3), 3100 HP (L4/L5) locomotive
In 1925, the first electric train ran between Bombay and Kurla, hauled by a imported SLM locomotive on a DC traction. In 1927, the first electric locomotive hauled passenger train was pulled by an imported WCP-1. In 1957, Indian Railways adopted 25 kV 50 Hz AC traction with the first runs beginning in December 1959 with the WAM-1 locomotives.
In 1925, the electric multiple units (EMU) introduced in Bombay were 1.5KV DC units imported from Cammell Laird and Uerdingenwagonfabrik. In the 1960s, EMUs were developed by Integral Coach Factory (ICF) in Chennai. Indian Railways uses multiple DC units in operation in several suburban sections which are classified from WCU-1 through WCU-15. BHEL developed AC-DC dual use EMUs which can run on 25kV AC and 1.5kV DC traction lines. In the late 1990s, MEMUs were developed which ran on 25KV AC power. AC electric multiple units are designated WAU-1 to WAU-4. In 2019, ICF rolled out three-phase AC units to replace conventional DC units.
Diesel
In 1954, the first diesel locomotive was used in India, which was manufactured by North British Locomotive Company. In 1958, WDM-1, the first locomotive used for mainline traffic, was imported from ALCO. In 1964, the first broad-gauge WDM-2 diesel locomotive was rolled out by Banaras Locomotive Works.
In 1958, Commonwealth Engineering of Australia supplied an unknown number of 400hp (300kW), 83-seat broad-gauge diesel-mechanical railcars to Indian Railways, classified as WRD-1. Powered by a pair of 200 hp Leyland engines, it had an axle arrangement of 1A-1A1, and a top speed of 110km/h (68mph).
In 1993-94, diesel multiple units (DMU) were introduced into service. Depending on their transmission system, they are classified as DEMU (diesel-electric transmission) or DHMU (diesel-hydraulic transmission). With the increase in electrification, DEMUS have been replaced by MEMUs in stages.
Steam
Broad-gauge
Indian Railways locomotives (clockwise from upper left): HPS, NRM WP 7200, B-26 and YP-class
In the 19th century, the railway companies ordered custom-built steam locomotives, usually from British manufacturers. With non-standardized and multiple designs, manufacturing cost was high and production was slow. During the 1890s, Indian railway companies imported locomotives from Germany and the United States when British manufacturers were suffering from work outages. The locomotives used included:
EIR class G: 2-2-2T, first two named Express and Fairy Queen; built in 1855, the latter is the world's oldest locomotive to be in working order and was rebuilt by ICF; housed at East Indian Railway (EIR)
In the early 1900s, the British Engineering Standards Committee (later the British Engineering Standards Association) began designing a series of locomotives for use by Indian railways. The first two designs emerged in 1903: a 4-4-0 passenger and 0-6-0 goods. They were revised in 1905 and 1906 with additional heavier, more-powerful locomotives:
These advisory BESA designs were customized by the railway companies, which used different classification systems; only the state-operated railways used the class designations SP, SG, PT, HP, AP, HG and HT. When superheating was accepted, superheated versions were classified SPS, SGS and so on (if built with superheaters) and SPC, SGC and so on (if converted from saturated to superheated).
Indian Railways locomotives: 1935 XP class (left) and 1927 XB class
After World War I, larger and more-powerful locomotives were designed by British consulting engineers for the Indian government. They began to operate from 1927:
During World War II, large numbers of 2-8-2 locomotives were acquired from the United States and Canada and classified AWD and CWD. The Baldwin Locomotive Works adapted the USATC S160 Class locomotive design for India, and it became class AWC. Sixty broad-gauge locomotives were built in 1944 as part of an order of 180 S160 engines. In addition to modified frame spreaders, axles, cylinders, and cab, the Indian locomotives had a turbo generator and electric lighting (not included in the standard European design). Many parts (including boilers) were identical to those in standard-gauge locomotives.
(clockwise from upper left) WL- and YG-class locomotives; an M2-162, and a display engine in Guntur Division
Although new classes were designed shortly before the war, many did not enter service until the post-war period. The new classes were indicated by the change of broad-gauge prefix from X to W, and plans were implemented to begin manufacturing locomotives in India. The new classes were:
In 2015, the first compressed natural gas (CNG) powered multiple units were rolled out by ICF. In 2020, Southern Railway zone introduced the first battery/AC dual shunter, termed as WAG5HA, with "H" for hybrid. The first indigenously designed and manufactured hydrogen-powered train was introduced in August 2025.
↑Baldwin Locomotive Works drawing index and bill of materials for special order 43306, locomotive design 2-8-0 19S, numbers 666 to 845 for the U.S. Government, War Department.
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