Madurai railway division is a railway division belonging to the Southern Railways (SR), India. Officially created in 1956, it spans over 1,356 km (843 mi) making it the largest railway division of the Southern Railways. Prior to the formation of the Thiruvananthapuram railway division which was carved out of the division, it was one of the largest railway divisions in the whole of the country. Currently it covers up to 12 districts of Tamil Nadu and 1 in Kerala. Its headquarters is in Madurai.
Front view of Madurai Junction
Southern Railway (SR) is one of the eighteen zones of Indian Railways. It is headquartered at Chennai and operates across the states of Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Andhra Pradesh and the union territory of Puducherry. The origin of the Southern Railway can be traced back to the Madras Railway formed in 1845. Southern Railway was created on 14 April 1951 by merging three state railways, namely, the Madras and Southern Mahratta Railway, the South Indian Railway Company, and the Mysore State Railway. Southern Railway maintains about 5,081 km (3,157 mi) of railway lines and operates 727 railway stations.
Southern Railway zone
Southern Railway headquarters in Chennai
A X class locomotive of the Nilgiri Mountain Railway
A typical LHB coach of Indian Railways