What are railway station codes? How are they assigned?

Station codes are 2-5 letter identifiers (e.g., NDLS for New Delhi, BCT for Mumbai Central). Indian Railways assigns them based on station name / location. They're used in tickets, PNR, and timetables.

Station codes = unique alpha identifiers for railway stations.

Examples:

NDLS — New Delhi
BCT — Mumbai Central (Bombay Central historic)
HWH — Howrah
MAS — Madras (now Chennai Central)
SBC — KSR Bengaluru City
JP — Jaipur

Code structure:

2-5 letters
Usually derived from station name (sometimes anglicized historic name)
Major junctions get shorter codes
Suburban stations get longer / suffixed codes

Usage:

Printed on tickets
Used in PNR system
Timetables & enquiries
Used for booking by code (faster than typing full name)

A full code-to-name list is available on Indian Railways' website. Major code changes (like MAS → MAS, but station name changing from Madras to Chennai) keep the historic code for system compatibility.

What are railway station codes? How are they assigned?

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