Bikaner Junction railway station (station code: BKN) is a major railway station serving the city of Bikaner in the state of Rajasthan, India. It functions as the principal station in the Bikaner urban area and is one of the most important junctions in the desert region of north-western Rajasthan. The station is administered by the North Western Railway zone of Indian Railways, and serves as the headquarters of the Bikaner railway division.
| Station name | Bikaner Junction |
|---|---|
| Station code | BKN |
| Location | Bikaner, Rajasthan, India |
| Country | India |
| Owner | Indian Railways |
| Operator / Zone | North Western Railway |
| Division | Bikaner railway division |
| Line(s) | Rewari–Bathinda line, Bikaner–Jodhpur line, Bikaner–Suratgarh line, among others |
| Track gauge | 1,676 mm (5 ft 6 in) broad gauge |
| Electrification | Progressively electrified as part of Indian Railways' network electrification programme |
Bikaner is a historic city in the Thar Desert region, founded in the late 15th century. The arrival of the railway in the late 19th and early 20th centuries was central to the development of the former princely state of Bikaner, linking it with major centres in Punjab, Delhi and the rest of Rajputana. Bikaner Junction grew into the focal point of these connections, handling both passenger and freight traffic across the desert districts.
Bikaner Junction is a meeting point of several routes that fan out across Rajasthan and into adjoining states:
The station is the originating or terminating point for several long-distance express trains and is also served by mail, superfast and passenger services connecting Bikaner with cities including Delhi, Jaipur, Jodhpur, Mumbai, Kolkata, Chennai, Bengaluru, Howrah, Guwahati and various centres in Punjab and Haryana. Suburban and intra-state services link Bikaner with smaller towns of the Bikaner, Sri Ganganagar, Hanumangarh and Churu districts.
Passenger amenities at the junction include multiple platforms with foot overbridges, waiting rooms, retiring rooms, computerised reservation, parcel handling, and catering facilities. The station also handles substantial goods traffic, particularly agricultural produce, gypsum, cement and petroleum products typical of the region.
Bikaner is the headquarters of the Bikaner railway division, one of the operating divisions of the North Western Railway zone, which itself is headquartered at Jaipur. The division is responsible for a large network of routes spread over the northern parts of Rajasthan and adjoining areas of Haryana and Punjab, with Bikaner Junction acting as its operational nucleus.
As the largest station in a sparsely populated but strategically important desert region, Bikaner Junction plays a central role in passenger mobility, military logistics for nearby cantonments and border areas, and the movement of goods between the desert districts and the rest of the country. It is also a key gateway for tourists visiting Bikaner's heritage sites such as Junagarh Fort, the Karni Mata Temple at Deshnoke and the National Research Centre on Camel.