Context: Recently, the Union Cabinet approved the plan to create the new South Coast Railway Zone, the 18th railway zone of India. It also bifurcated the Waltair Railway Division into two parts.
Relevance of the Topic: Prelims: Railway Zones
List of Indian Railways Zones and their Headquarters
- The Indian railways network is divided into 18 zones.
- Zones are divided into divisions.
- Each zone has their own headquarters.
| Railway Zone | Headquarters |
| Northern Railway | New Delhi |
| North Central Railway | Allahabad |
| North Eastern Railway | Gorakhpur |
| North Frontier Railway | Guwahati |
| North Western Railway | Jaipur |
| Eastern Railway | Kolkata |
| East Central Railway | Hajipur |
| East Coast Railway | Bhubaneshwar |
| West Central Railway | Jabalpur |
| Western Railway | Mumbai CST |
| Konkan Railway | Navi Mumbai |
| Central Railway | Mumbai |
| South East Central Railway | Bilaspur |
| South Eastern Railway | Garden Reach, Kolkata |
| South Coast Railway | Visakhapatnam |
| South Central Railway | Secunderabad |
| South Western Railway | Hubli |
| Southern Railway | Chennai |
About South Coast Railway Zone
- 18th Railway Zone of India. Approved by Union Cabinet on February 7, 2025
- Legal Basis: Created under Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation Act, 2014
- Carved out from: East Coast Railway (ECoR) and South Central Railway (SCR)
- Headquarters: Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh
- Key Divisions:
- Vijayawada Division (from SCR)
- Guntur Division (from SCR)
- Visakhapatnam Division (formerly part of Waltair Division)
- Strategic Importance:
- Enhances freight and passenger connectivity in Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, and Tamil Nadu
- Supports industrial and agricultural growth
- Boosts logistics for ports like Visakhapatnam and Krishnapatnam
- Promotes tourism, including to Tirupati
Bifurcation of Waltair Division
- Recently, Waltair Railway Division (earlier under the East Coast Railway) was bifurcated into two parts.
- 1st part: Visakhapatnam Railway Division, under the new South Coast Railway Zone.
- 2nd part: A new division with headquarters at Rayagada, Odisha, under the East Coast Railway.
- Significance of Waltair Railway Division:
- It was among the largest revenue-generating areas of the Indian Railways.
- Its freight traffic is linked to the mining and steel industries of Odisha and Chhattisgarh.
- Contributed 74.66 million tonnes of freight loading in 2023-24.