Hill Train India

Darjeeling

According to Mark Twain, a trip on the DHRis the most enjoyable day I have spent on the earth. Few will disagree with him. Darjeeling becomes the toy train and the toy train, Darjeeling. In fact, the verdant slopes appear more as a backdrop to the ubiquitous toy train. Without it, the Darjeeling landscape would appear bereft. The steamy hiss of the engine, the strident whistle and the clatter of the carriages as the toy train winds its way up the hill blend seamlessly with the cacophony of hill traffic especially because the railway and the hill road chase each other all the way from Siliguri to Darjeeling. At times the narrow gauge railway track and the road seem to move in tandem, a picture of perfect harmony. Many times in fact 150 times in the entire stretch they cross each other. Every now and then they play hide and seek like two feuding lovers. But they are never too faraway from each other at any point.

A World Heritage Site

The wake up call came and recently UNESCO declared DHR as a World Heritage Site. The world heritage site status puts DHR in the same exalted league as the hermitage in St. Petersburg, our very own Humayun’s Tomb in Delhi, Hampi in South India and other such man-made marvels. A heritage site is one that is worthy of preservation and a legacy that is worth bequeathing to posterity. After simmering in the Austrian Alps, DHR is the second railway system in the world to be accorded the World Heritage status.

Journey On The DHR

A ride on the DHR is not for the hurried and hassled traveller who is impatient to reach his destination. It’s for those who believe the journey is the destination. Much like a toy train strung together from match-boxes, the DHR balances on two-feet tracks moving at a maximum speed of 15-km an hour. It takes all of nine hours to reach Darjeeling from Siliguri and at quite a reasonable sum.

Imaginatively named coaches such as Shivalik, Kanchenjunga, etc with wide windows offer picture postcard views of Rhododendron slopes. Kanchenjunga in all her snowy glory, beckons you tantalisingly from every turn the train takes. In fact, there are so many turns and twists in the track that it seems as though the train is turning its head to check up on its rear from time to time. The train passes through bazaars so close that tourists can virtually lean out and help themselves to the merchandise in the shops.

It hugs the hillsides, giving one a glimpse into the day-to-day lives of the hill people. It seems to be a constant wonder for the locals who stop in their tracks to watch it go by just as their parents and grandparents must have done it in their time. Even as traffic on the narrow hill roads get snarled from time to time, the DHR gets right of way as it passes regally through the townships.

The officials hope that the World Heritage status will attract fun seekers and adventure lovers to Darjeeling. DHR might soon replace tea as the mascot of this lovely hill station. In fact, a trip to Darjeeling would be worth the effort just for the train ride. The DHR is a celebration, no less.

Nilgiri Mountain Railway

Coonoor is situated 6,000 feet above sea level at the southeast corner of the Nilgiri plateau and at the head of the principal pass from the plains. Up this Ghat runs a road 21 miles long and a rack railway 16 ¾ miles from Mettupalaiyam in Coimbatore district. The place was constituted a municipality in 1866. Coonoor remained a terminus for the Nilgiri line for eight years. The extension from Coonoor to Ootacamund was constructed by the Government of India and the line was opened up to Fernhill on September 15, 1908, and up to Ootacamund, a month later. Rack system was discarded for this extension though the ruling gradient is as severe as 1 in 23. The Ooty terminus was named Udagamandalam, the Tamil word for Ootacamund.

The Kangra Valley Railway

No one could have thought of making a finer selection of territory for building a new mountain railway in India than the Kangra valley. Few places can match this scenic region in the sub-Himalayas. One will stumble across a land that has cast its magic spell upon those who planned the railway and those who built the line. The result is there for all to see- an achievement that in every way makes one proud of the fine record that the history of Indian railways has always had.

The Kangra Valley Attractions

As a holiday resort, the valley has irresistible attractions. A congenial climate with alluring chances of spotting wildlife; peaks to tempt mountaineers or just rock faces to scamper over. If one is not the athletic type, there are wonderful walks among the pines at Palampur and elsewhere too. March and April are the best months to visit the valley when it is covered with wild Rambler Roses, Oleanders, Rhododendron and fruit blossoms.

The Vajreshwari Devi Temple in Kangra town, achieved a reputation for wealth in gold, pearls and diamonds and tempted many invaders over centuries. Muhammad Ghazni sacked it in 1009, Muhammad bin Tughlaq in the early 15th century and the temple was sacked yet again by Khawas Khan in 1540.

In the intervening years the temple was rebuilt and refurbished several ties but in the great earthquake of 1905 both the temple and the fort were badly damaged. The present temple was built in 1920 and stands behind the crowded, colourful bazaar. The state govt. maintains the temple and the deity sits under a silver dome with silver umbrellas.

Matheran Light Railway

Abdul Hussain, son of the business tycoon, Sir Adamjee Peerbhoy of Mumbai, was a regular visitor to Matheran at the turn of the century. After having obtained a reluctant consent from his father, young Abdul Hussain camped at Neral in 1900 AD to plan for a narrow gauge railway line to Matheran. The construction started in 1904 and the two feet gauge line finally opened to traffic in 1907.

During Monsoons

As a precautionary measure against frequent slides, the line used to close during the monsoons (July-August) till recently, but now passenger services continue even during rainy months. To commemorate the continuance of trains in the monsoon months of 1982, a M.L.R. loco N.o. 741 (O & K 1767 of 1905) has been installed at the Matheran station.

Kalka-Shimla Railway

The idea of a railway line to Shimla dates back to the introduction of railways in India. In the Delhi gazette, a correspondent in November 1847 sketched the route of a railway to Shimla with estimates of the traffic returns etc. in appropriate style. He wrote:We might then see these cooler regions become the permanent seat of a government daily invigorated by a temperature adapted to refresh an European constitution and keep the mental powers in a state of health alike beneficial both to the rulers and the ruled.

Survey for a railway line to Shimla featured in the administrative reports of the Indian railways year after year. It is interesting to note that the Shimla line was the most surveyed line. The earliest survey was made in 1884 followed by another survey in 1885. Based on these two surveys, a project report was submitted in 1887 to the government of India for an adhesion line, 68 miles in length and with a ruling gradient of 1 in 33. After the commencement of Delhi-Ambala-Kalka line, fresh surveys were made. Lengthy debates followed and finally an adhesion line was chosen in preference to the rack system.