" After all, what other experiences do we have to compare with travel as opportunities to expand our horizons (geographically, culturally, emotionally, intellectually) to encounter people, cultures and places so different from ourselves?" This is what Mick smith and Rosaleen Duffy conclude in their analyses of Contemporary Geographies of Leisure, Tourism and Mobility. The efficacy of travel can never be over-stated and undertaking travel in the current times is increasingly becoming effortless thanks to the commitment and Zeal on the part of Railways, owing to their improved and widespread network.

North Eastern Railway, the Jewel Set in the Crown of Indian Railways, has embarked on the mission to vanquish distances and create its own metaphor of existence. Formally established in the year , it remains the largest zone in terms of route Kilometers, even after the re-organization of the Indian Railways into 16 zones. Northern Eastern Railway now comprises of 3 Divisions- Varanasi, Izzatnagar and Lucknow .

India's destination to progress is not just due to the diligence & industry of its countrymen but also due to the inherent quality of its people to harmonize all the positive changes in the milieu to its plural frame-work. This plurality contributes to greater growth and development. And Northern Eastern Railway has endeavored to project the plurality in the part of India through its relentless pursuit in building a well-connected rail network to the different locations in this part of the country. Trains are operated on judicious and well-charted paths for enabling a rail traveler to glimpse the wonder that is India.

Indian Railways has endeavored to be tech-savvy in the past and still trying to incorporate and integrate all the technological changes in its business processes. We are continuing to reorient our perspectives to the changes in technology and to the resurgence in the economy.

There has been a more profound realization on the part of the organizations to improve their infrastructure for greater growth. Northern Eastern Railway has under taken greater exercises in planning and development for greater development of the region and incidentally to greater promotion of tourism.

The growth of signaling on Railways has seen mechanical signaling being replaced by electro-mechanical relays and microprocessor based interlocking. Similarly, in the field of telecommunication on Railways, electro-mechanical exchanges and over-head lines are gradually being replaced by systems based on State-of Art Optical Fiber and Digital Electronic Technologies.

Northern Eastern Railway is equipped with  Route Relay Interlocking (RRI) Systems including the system at important, which is the largest RRI System in the World as certified by the Guinness Book of Records Ltd. Workshops on Northern Railways have taken many strides in production of various signaling gears.

Northern Eastern Railway has evolved a system of working simultaneously on several sites for successful completion of Projects. It has successfully erected Foot-over-bridges simultaneously in the same traffic block on busy section. ART Conversion, Vacuum Pressure Impregnation Plants are some of the modernization activities carried on in the various Workshops of the Railway. The  Workshop has evolved an innovative method of reducing loco failure and occasionally fire in locos due to over-heating in HP Expresser Pipe. A modification has been carried out by the shed to improve air circulation in the expresser compartment by providing car body filters in the side panel to take care of this problem. Besides better cooling, this also enables a maintenance-friendly Expresser compartment.

With the resurgence in the economy, Indian Railways has found that technologically up-grading itself as a very interesting challenge. And the Railways engaged itself with great commitment to the task of growth and is tuning itself to the changes in the socio-economic scenario.