What railway became India’s first passenger railway when it opened between Bombay and Thane in 1853?

The railway that became India’s first passenger railway in 1853 was the Mumbai–Thane railway.

The inaugural passenger service ran on 16 April 1853 from Bori Bunder in Bombay, now Mumbai, to Thane. The route was about 34 kilometres long, and three steam locomotives—Sultan, Sindh and Sahib—hauled 14 coaches carrying invited passengers. The event is generally treated as the beginning of passenger railway service in India.

The line was built by the Great Indian Peninsula Railway with support from the colonial government. Railways were expected to improve movement between ports, commercial centres and inland regions, while also supporting military and administrative transport. Bombay’s original terminus was later replaced by the grand Victoria Terminus, now Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus.

A short railway had already been used for freight in parts of India, and the first passenger services in other regions followed soon afterward. This is why the Bombay–Thane route is specifically described as India’s first passenger railway rather than the country’s first railway of any kind.