Amritsar Junction railway station is the principal railway terminus serving the city of Amritsar in the Indian state of Punjab. It is one of the busiest stations in the Punjab region and functions as an important junction on the northern rail network of India, connecting the Sikh holy city with major destinations across the country. The station is administered by the Northern Railway zone of Indian Railways.
| Station name | Amritsar Junction |
|---|---|
| Station code | ASR |
| Location | Amritsar, Punjab, India |
| Owned by | Indian Railways |
| Operated by | Northern Railway |
| Line | Amritsar–Pathankot line, Amritsar–Delhi line, Amritsar–Attari line |
| Type | Junction station |
| Electrified | Yes |
Amritsar developed as an important commercial and religious centre during the 19th century, and the arrival of the railway reinforced its role as a regional hub. The station lies on the historic trunk route that links Delhi with Lahore via Ambala, Ludhiana and Jalandhar, a corridor that became a backbone of rail transport in undivided Punjab during the British colonial period. After the Partition of India in 1947, Amritsar Junction became the last major station on the Indian side of the border before the Attari–Wagah crossing.
The station serves as a junction for several routes:
The station handles long-distance, superfast, mail and express trains as well as suburban and passenger services. Notable services that originate from or pass through Amritsar Junction include the Shatabdi Express to New Delhi, the Swarna Shatabdi, and the Samjhauta Express, which historically ran between Amritsar/Delhi and Lahore via Attari before being suspended. The station is also the terminus for several long-distance trains connecting Amritsar with Mumbai, Kolkata, Chennai, Howrah, Nanded, Jammu Tawi, Dehradun, Kochuveli and other major cities.
The station has multiple platforms with foot overbridges, waiting rooms, retiring rooms, food plazas, computerised reservation counters, and tourist information services that cater to pilgrims visiting the Golden Temple. The forecourt of the station has been redeveloped to accommodate increased passenger traffic, and the station has been identified by Indian Railways for upgrades under modernisation programmes for high-traffic stations.
Amritsar Junction is significant both as a transport hub and as a gateway for visitors travelling to the Harmandir Sahib (Golden Temple), Jallianwala Bagh, the Durgiana Temple and the Wagah border ceremony. Its proximity to the international frontier with Pakistan also gives it strategic importance, particularly for the operation of cross-border rail services when these are active.