About Amritsar
Amritsar Junction, often written Amritsar Jn (station code ASR), is the largest and busiest railway station in Punjab, handling around 100,000 passengers a day. It is run by the Northern Railway zone's Firozpur division. For millions of pilgrims and visitors it is the arrival point for the Golden Temple (Sri Harmandir Sahib).
How Amritsar began
Amritsar's railway grew up on the road to Lahore, then the great city of undivided Punjab:
- 1862: the Amritsar–Attari section is completed, on the route to Lahore; the station dates from this year.
- 1865: the Scinde, Punjab & Delhi Railway completes the Multan–Lahore–Amritsar line.
- 1884: the broad-gauge Amritsar–Pathankot line opens.
- 2003–04: the Phagwara–Jalandhar City–Amritsar sector is electrified.
After Partition in 1947, the border was drawn just west of Amritsar, and the station became a frontier junction. Its long association with the famous Frontier Mail, renamed the Golden Temple Mail in 1996, continues today on the route to Mumbai.
Amritsar's layout
There are 10 platforms: 8 for commercial passenger trains, 1 for freight, and 1 for the military and parcels. Platform 1B is reserved for Indian Army trains, and a Movement Control Office for the armed forces operates on platform 1, reflecting Amritsar's position near the border.
Lines radiating from Amritsar
- Ambala–Attari line, towards Jalandhar, Ludhiana and Delhi
- Amritsar–Jammu main line
- Amritsar–Pathankot line (107 km)
- Amritsar–Dera Baba Nanak line (54 km)
- Amritsar–Khem Karan line (78 km)
Notable trains at Amritsar
Amritsar has Shatabdi and Vande Bharat services to New Delhi, the historic Golden Temple Mail to Mumbai, and express trains across India. The cross-border Samjhauta Express to Pakistan, which ran via Attari, was suspended in 2019. Shatabdi, Vande Bharat and Golden Temple Mail timings are in our train timetable.
Getting to Amritsar
- Golden Temple: a short ride by auto, e-rickshaw or free shuttle from the station area.
- Attari–Wagah border: the daily border ceremony is reached by road from the city.
- Bus: the city bus stand is close by.
Amritsar pointers
- Jallianwala Bagh is right next to the Golden Temple, so both are easy to visit together.
- Gurpurab and Diwali (Bandi Chhor Divas) bring very large crowds to the city and station.