Katihar Junction railway station

East Indian Railway Company opened the Manihari–Katihar–Kasba section in 1888 and the North Bengal Railway opened the Katihar–Raiganj section the same year. The Barsoi–Kishanganj section opened in 1889. All these lines were -wide metre-gauge lines. Darjeeling Himalayan Railway, operating narrow-gauge lines, extended their operations from Siliguri to in 1915 and to Dalkhola. Siliguri was connected to Kolkata via the eastern part of Bengal since 1878 (for details see Howrah–New Jalpaiguri line). However, with the partition of India in 1947, railway services in the region were completely disrupted. In 1949, the narrow-gauge Siliguri–Kishanganj section was upgraded to metre gauge. Thus there was a direct metre-gauge connection from Manihari to Siliguri via Katihar. The importance of Katihar station grew because of the jute mill in the region. == Development ==

In the early 1960s, when Farakka Barrage was being constructed, Indian Railways took the initiative to extend broad-gauge rail link from Kolkata. Gauge conversion work (from metre gauge to broad gauge) in the Barauni–Katihar section was taken up in 1978–79 and completed in 1982. The Siliguri–Katihar line was the last surviving metre-gauge line in the area. The Aluabari Road–Katihar section already had a broad-gauge line running alongside the metre-gauge line. The Aluabari Road–Siliguri section needed to be converted. Conversion work was taken up in 2008; train services in the section were suspended and conversion work was completed early in 2011. ==Station facilities==

The following services are available in Katihar Jn. railway station: • 10 (02 bedded) AC retiring rooms • 05 (02 bedded) non AC retiring rooms • 01 (08 bedded) AC dormitory • 04 (01 bedded) AC cabin dormitory • 01 (06 bedded) non AC dormitory • Executive lounge • High speed Google railwire free Wi-Fi service • Upper class/lower class waiting rooms with free Wi-Fi/AC/TV/charging points/drinking water & separate ladies'/gents' washrooms • Food plaza • Tea stall • FOB with 4X escalator/elevators 3X • CCTV surveillance == Platforms ==

There are eight functional platforms at Main terminal which are interconnected and have multiple foot overbridges. There is also one platform at the Manihari terminal, which is located a few meters from the main Katihar Junction terminal. == Gallery ==