India's Railway Never Intended to Benefit the Masses

Nobody who has visited India can fail to marvel at the country's railways. Employing 1.3 million people, they are the world's third largest employer after the Chinese People's Liberation Army and Walmart. A ride on them is a quintessentially Indian experience, a window to the wonderful beauty and diversity of the country and its bewildering complexity.

Is it a legacy of the Raj, that Indians should cherish? Christian Wolmar suggests not. He argues that the British never intended the railways to benefit Indians. They were constructed to transport soldiers around the country to strengthen Britain's hold on India and open up the country for British goods, helping the British economy and making profit for British investors.