Difference between revisions of "Mountain Railways of India" - New World Encyclopedia

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<!--{{Expand|date=January 2007}}—>
 
<!--{{Expand|date=January 2007}}—>
 
{{Infobox World Heritage Site
 
{{Infobox World Heritage Site
 
| WHS        = Mountain Railways of India
 
| WHS        = Mountain Railways of India
| Image      = [[Image:DHR_780_on_Batasia_Loop_05-02-21_08.jpeg|300px|The Darjeeling Toy Train.]]
+
| Image      = [[Image:DHR_780_on_Batasia_Loop_05-02-21_08.jpeg|200px|The Darjeeling Toy Train.]]
 
| State Party = {{IND}}
 
| State Party = {{IND}}
 
| Type        = Cultural
 
| Type        = Cultural
Line 14: Line 14:
 
| Link        = http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/944
 
| Link        = http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/944
 
}}
 
}}
Several [[railway]]s were built in the mountainous regions of [[India]]. Collectively they are known as the '''Mountain railways of India'''. Four of these railways are running in 2007:  
+
Several [[railway]]s had been built in the mountainous regions of [[India]]. Collectively they have been called the '''Mountain railways of India.''' Four of those railways continue to run in 2007:  
* Darjeeling Himalayan Railway
 
* Nilgiri Mountain Railway
 
* Kalka-Shimla Railway
 
* Matheran Hill Railway
 
  
The collective designation refers to the current project by the Indian government to nominate a representative example of its historic railways to [[UNESCO]] as a [[World Heritage Site]].
+
* '''Darjeeling Himalayan Railway'''
 +
* '''Nilgiri Mountain Railway'''
 +
* '''Kalka-Shimla Railway'''
 +
* '''Matheran Hill Railway'''
  
The [[Darjeeling Himalayan Railway]] was recognized in 1999, while the [[Nilgiri Mountain Railway]] was added as an extension to the site in 2005. They were recognized for being [http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/944 outstanding examples of bold, ingenious engineering solutions for the problem of establishing an effective rail link through a rugged, mountainous terrain].
+
The collective designation refers to the current project by the Indian government to nominate a representative example of its historic railways to [[UNESCO]] as a [[World Heritage Site]]. The [[Darjeeling Himalayan Railway]] had been recognized in 1999, while UNESCO added the [[Nilgiri Mountain Railway]] as an extension to the site in 2005. They won recognition for being outstanding examples of bold, ingenious engineering solutions for the problem of establishing an effective rail link through a rugged, mountainous terrain.
 
+
{{toc}}
Both the '''Kalka-Shimla Railway''' and the '''Matheran Hill Railway''' are on the tentative nomination list for that site.
+
Both the '''Kalka-Shimla Railway''' and the '''Matheran Hill Railway''' made the tentative nomination list for that site.  
 
 
<!--{{Mergefrom|History of Darjeeling Himalayan Railway|date=October 2007}}—>
 
 
 
<!--{{Infobox World Heritage Site
 
| WHS        = Mountain Railways of India
 
| Image      =[[Image:DHR 780 on Batasia Loop 05-02-21 08.jpeg|240px|The Darjeeling Himalayan Railway]]
 
| State Party = {{IND}}
 
| Type        = Cultural
 
| Criteria    = ii, iv
 
| ID          = 944bis
 
| Region      = [[List of World Heritage Sites in Asia and Australasia|Asia-Pacific]]
 
| Year        = 1999
 
| Session    = 23rd
 
| Extension  = 2005
 
| Danger      =
 
| Link        = http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/944
 
}}—>
 
  
 
==Darjeeling Himalayan Railway==
 
==Darjeeling Himalayan Railway==
The '''Darjeeling Himalayan Railway''', nicknamed the "Toy Train," is a {{2ft}} gauge [[narrow-gauge]] railway from [[Siliguri]] to [[Darjeeling]] in [[West Bengal]], run by the [[Indian Railways]].
 
 
It was built between 1879 and 1881 and is about 86&nbsp;km long. The elevation level is from about 100 m at Siliguri to about 2,200&nbsp;m at Darjeeling. It is still powered by a steam engine. A modern diesel engine is used for Darjeeling’s mail.
 
 
Since 1999 the train has been a [[World Heritage Site]] as listed by [[United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization|UNESCO]]. In 2005, UNESCO added the [[Nilgiri Mountain Railway]] as an extension to the original inscription.
 
 
 
===History===
 
===History===
<!--{{main|History of Darjeeling Himalayan Railway}}—>
+
The '''Darjeeling Himalayan Railway,''' nicknamed the "Toy Train," maintains a {{2ft}} gauge [[narrow-gauge]] railway from [[Siliguri]] to [[Darjeeling]] in [[West Bengal]], run by the [[Indian Railways]].  
A [[standard gauge]] railway connected [[Calcutta]] (now Kolkata) and Siliguri in 1878.<ref name=DHRofc>{{cite web
+
[[Image:Darjeeling Himalayan Railway.jpg|thumb|right|200px|The "Toy Train" approaching Darjeeling.]]
| url = http://www.dhr.in/
 
| title = DHR and Its Development
 
| accessdate = 2007-02-24
 
| work = About DHR,dhr.in
 
| publisher = Darjeeling Himalayan Railway, NF Railway, India
 
}}</ref> Siliguri, at the base of the Himalayas, was connected to Darjeeling by a cart road (the present day [[Hill Cart Road]]) on which "Tonga services" (carriage services) were available.<ref name=darjnewshist>{{cite web
 
| url = http://www.darjeelingnews.net/darjeeling_himalayan_railway.html
 
| title = DHR History
 
| accessdate = 2007-02-24
 
| work = darjeelingnews.net
 
| publisher = Darjeelingnews
 
}}</ref> [[Franklin Prestage]], an agent of [[Eastern Bengal Railway Company]] approached the government with a proposal of laying a steam tramway from Siliguri to Darjeeling.<ref name=darjnewshist/> The proposal was accepted in 1879 following the positive report of a committee formed by Sir [[Ashley Eden]], the Lieutenant Governor of [[Bengal]].<ref name=darjnewshist/> Construction started the same year.
 
 
 
Gillander Arbuthnot & Co. constructed the railway. The stretch from Siliguri to [[Kurseong]] was opened on 23 August 1880, while the official opening of the line up to Darjeeling was on 4 July 1881.<ref name=DHRofc/> Several engineering adjustments were made later in order to ease the gradient of the rails.<ref name=darjnewshist/><ref name=DHRsoc>{{cite web
 
| url = http://www.dhrs.org/home.htm
 
| title = A Brief History of the DHR
 
| accessdate = 2007-02-24
 
| last = Whittle
 
| first = Paul
 
| coauthors = Terry Martin
 
| work = History and A Trip Up the Line
 
| publisher = Darjeeling Himalayan Railway Society
 
}}</ref> Despite natural calamities such as an earthquake in 1897 and a major cyclone in 1899<ref name=DHRsoc/> the DHR continued to improve with new extension lines, and the passenger as well as goods carrying were increasing.<ref name=DHRsoc/> DHR started to face competition from bus services that started operating in the Hill Cart Road, and took less time than the railway to reach Darjeeling. During World War 2, DHR played a vital role transporting military personnel and supplies to the numerous camps around Ghum and Darjeeling.<ref name=DHRsoc/>
 
 
 
After the independence of India, DHR was absorbed in the [[Indian Railway]], and became a part of the  [[Northeast Frontier Railway]] zone in 1958.<ref name=DHRsoc/> In 1962, the line was realigned at Siliguri and extended by nearly {{convert|4|mi|km|0|lk=on}} to [[New Jalpaiguri]] (NJP) to meet the new broad gauge line there. DHR remained closed for 18 months during the hostile period of [[Gorkhaland#Gorkhaland movement|Gorkhaland Movement]] in 1988&ndash;1989.<ref name=DHRsoc/>  DHR was declared a World Heritage Site by [[UNESCO]] in 1999, only the second railway to have this honour bestowed upon it,<ref name=heritageunesco>{{cite web
 
| publisher=UNESCO World Heritage Centre | url=http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/944 | title=Mountain Railways of India | accessdate=2006-04-30
 
}}</ref> the first one being [[Semmering Railway]] of [[Austria]] in 1998.
 
 
 
<!--{{Mergeto|Darjeeling Himalayan Railway|date=October 2007}}—>
 
 
 
[[Image:DHR 780 on Batasia Loop 05-02-21 08.jpeg|thumb|250px|The Darjeeling Himalayan Railway, now]]
 
[[Image:Darjeeling Himalayan Railway.jpg|thumb|right|250px|The "Toy Train" approaching Darjeeling.]]
 
The [[Darjeeling Himalayan Railway]], nicknamed the "Toy Train," is a {{2ft}} [[narrow-gauge]] railway from [[Siliguri]] to [[Darjeeling]] in the [[India]]n [[States and territories of India|state]] of [[West Bengal]], run by the [[Indian Railways]].
 
  
A [[standard gauge]] railway connected [[Calcutta]] (now Kolkata) and Siliguri in 1878.<ref name=DHRofc>{{cite web
+
A [[standard gauge]] railway connected [[Calcutta]] (now Kolkata) and Siliguri in 1878.<ref name=DHRofc>Darjeeling Himalayan Railway, [http://www.dhr.in/ DHR and Its Development.] Retrieved January 8, 2009.</ref> Siliguri, located at the base of the [[Himalayas]], was connected to Darjeeling by a cart road (the present day [[Hill Cart Road]]) on which [[Tanga (carriage)|tonga]] services were available.<ref name=darjnews>Darjeerling News, [http://www.darjeelingnews.net/darjeeling_himalayan_railway.html DHR History.] Retrieved February 24, 2007.</ref> [[Franklin Prestage]], an agent of [[Eastern Bengal Railway Company]] approached the government with a proposal of laying a steam tramway from Siliguri to Darjeeling.<ref name=darjnews/> Sir [[Ashley Eden]], the Lieutenant Governor of [[Bengal]], formed a committee to assess the feasibility of the project. The government accepted the proposal in 1879 following the positive report of the committee.<ref name=darjnews/> Construction started the same year.
| url = http://www.dhr.in/
 
| title = DHR and Its Development
 
| accessdate = 2007-02-24
 
| work = About DHR,dhr.in
 
| publisher = Darjeeling Himalayan Railway, NF Railway, India
 
}}</ref> Siliguri, located at the base of the [[Himalayas]], was connected to Darjeeling by a cart road (the present day [[Hill Cart Road]]) on which [[Tanga (carriage)|tonga]] services were available.<ref name=darjnews>{{cite web
 
| url = http://www.darjeelingnews.net/darjeeling_himalayan_railway.html
 
| title = DHR History
 
| accessdate = 2007-02-24
 
| work = darjeelingnews.net
 
| publisher = Darjeelingnews
 
}}</ref> [[Franklin Prestage]], an agent of [[Eastern Bengal Railway Company]] approached the government with a proposal of laying a steam tramway from Siliguri to Darjeeling.<ref name=darjnews/> Sir [[Ashley Eden]], the Lieutenant Governor of [[Bengal]], formed a committee to assess the feasibility of the project. The proposal was accepted in 1879 following the positive report of the committee.<ref name=darjnews/> Construction started the same year.
 
  
[[Image:Agony point 1921.jpg|right|thumb|250px|Darjeeling Himalayan Railway, in 1921]]
+
Gillander Arbuthnot & Company received the responsibility of construction. By March 1880, the line extended to [[Tindharia]]. [[Robert Bulwer-Lytton, 1st Earl of Lytton|Lord Lytton]], the first [[Governor-General of India|Viceroy]] to visit Darjeeling rode in the train up to Tindharia.<ref name=darjnews/> The stretch from Siliguri to [[Kurseong]] opened on August 23, 1880. The Siliguri to Darjeeling track inaugurated on July 4, 1881.<ref name=DHRofc/> The name of the rail company promptly changed to the Darjeeling Himalayan Railway Company. Initially the alignment of the railroad followed Hill Cart Road. It became apparent that in some areas the steepness of the road proved too difficult for the locomotives to maneuver easily. In 1882, the company constructed four loops and four reverses (zig-zags) between [[Sukna]] and [[Gayabari]] to ease the gradient.<ref name=DHRsoc>Paul Whittle, [http://www.dhrs.org/home.htm A Brief History of the DHR,] Darjeeling Himalayan Railway Society. Retrieved February 24, 2007.</ref>
Gillander Arbuthnot & Company was given the responsibility of construction. By March 1880, the line was extended up to [[Tindharia]]. [[Robert Bulwer-Lytton, 1st Earl of Lytton|Lord Lytton]], the first [[Governor-General of India|Viceroy]] to visit Darjeeling was conveyed in the train up to Tindharia.<ref name=darjnews/> The stretch from Siliguri to [[Kurseong]] was opened on 23 August 1880. The Siliguri to Darjeeling track was inaugurated on 4 July 1881.<ref name=DHRofc/> The name of the rail company was promptly changed to Darjeeling Himalayan Railway Company. Initially the alignment of the railroad followed Hill Cart Road. However, it became apparent that in some areas the steepness of the road was more than the locomotives could easily maneuver. In 1882 four loops and four reverses (zig-zags) were constructed between [[Sukna]] and [[Gayabari]] to ease the gradient.<ref name=DHRsoc>{{cite web
+
[[Image:Agony point 1921.jpg|right|thumb|200px|Darjeeling Himalayan Railway, in 1921]]
| url = http://www.dhrs.org/home.htm
+
In 1886, the line extended a quarter of mile to Darjeeling Bazar.<ref name=DHRofc/> The Darjeeling station underwent renovation in 1891 while Kurseong got a new station building and storage shed in 1896.<ref name=DHRsoc/> Darjeeling Himalayan Railway (DHR) suffered from an earthquake in 1897 and a major cyclone in 1899.<ref name=DHRsoc/> By 1909&ndash;1910, DHR carried 174,000 passengers and 47,000 tons of goods annually.<ref name=DHRsoc/> The first bogie carriages entered service, replacing the extremely basic four wheel carriages. DHR extension lines underwent construction to Kishanganj in 1914, and Gielkhola in 1915.<ref name=DHRofc/> At Tindharia the railway works relocated from behind the loco shed to a new and extensive site.<ref name=DHRsoc/>
| title = A Brief History of the DHR
 
| accessdate = 2007-02-24
 
| last = Whittle
 
| first = Paul
 
| coauthors = Terry Martin
 
| work = History and A Trip Up the Line
 
| publisher = Darjeeling Himalayan Railway Society
 
}}</ref> The line was extended by a quarter of mile to Darjeeling Bazar in 1886.<ref name=DHRofc/> The Darjeeling station was renovated in 1891 while Kurseong got a new station building and storage shed in 1896.<ref name=DHRsoc/> Darjeeling Himalayan Railway (DHR) suffered from an earthquake in 1897 and a major cyclone in 1899.<ref name=DHRsoc/> By 1909&ndash;1910, DHR was carrying 174,000 passengers and 47,000 tons of goods annually.<ref name=DHRsoc/> The first bogie carriages entered service, replacing very basic 4 wheel carriages. DHR extension lines were constructed up to Kishanganj in 1914, and Gielkhola in 1915.<ref name=DHRofc/> At Tindharia the railway works were relocated from behind the loco shed to a new and extensive site.<ref name=DHRsoc/>
 
  
The [[Batasia loop]] was constructed in 1919, eliminating problems by creating easier gradients on the ascent from Darjeeling.<ref name=DHRsoc/> However, DHR started to face competition from bus services that started operating in the Hill Cart Road, and took less time than the railway to reach Darjeeling. In 1934, a major earthquake in [[Bihar]] shook all of Northeast India. Many buildings in Darjeeling were heavily damaged and the railway was also badly affected, although it soon recovered and played a vital role in transporting repair materials.<ref name=DHRsoc/> During World War 2, DHR played a vital role transporting military personnel and supplies to the numerous camps around [[Ghum]] and Darjeeling.<ref name=DHRsoc/>  
+
The [[Batasia loop]], constructed in 1919, eliminated problems by creating easier gradients on the ascent from Darjeeling.<ref name=DHRsoc/> DHR started to face competition from bus services that started operating in the Hill Cart Road, and took less time than the railway to reach Darjeeling. In 1934, a major earthquake in [[Bihar]] shook all of Northeast India. Many buildings in Darjeeling suffered heavy damage, the railway also badly damaged, although it soon recovered and played a vital role in transporting repair materials.<ref name=DHRsoc/> During World War II, DHR played a vital role transporting military personnel and supplies to the numerous camps around [[Ghum]] and Darjeeling.<ref name=DHRsoc/>  
 +
[[Image:DHR 780 on Batasia Loop 05-02-21 08.jpeg|thumb|200px|The Darjeeling Himalayan Railway, now.]]
  
After the Independence of India, DHR was purchased by the Indian Government and was absorbed into the Indian Government Railways organisation.<ref name=DHRsoc/> DHR came under the management of the Assam Railways organisation. In 1952, Assam Railway, including DHR, became part of the [[North Eastern Railway (India)|North Eastern Railway Zone]]<ref name=DHRsoc/> and later in 1958, a part of the [[Northeast Frontier Railway]] Zone of Indian Railway.<ref name=DHRsoc/> In 1962, the line was realigned at Siliguri and extended by nearly 4&nbsp;miles (6&nbsp;km) to [[New Jalpaiguri]] (NJP) to meet the new broad gauge line there.<ref name=DHRsoc/> It opened for freight that year and for passengers in 1964. The loco shed and carriage depot at Siliguri Junction were relocated to NJP.
+
After the Independence of India, the Indian Government purchased DHR, absorbing it into the Indian Government Railways organization.<ref name=DHRsoc/> DHR came under the management of the Assam Railways organisation. In 1952, Assam Railway, including DHR, became part of the [[North Eastern Railway (India)|North Eastern Railway Zone]]<ref name=DHRsoc/> and later in 1958, a part of the [[Northeast Frontier Railway]] Zone of Indian Railway.<ref name=DHRsoc/> In 1962, the tracks realigned at Siliguri, extending the line by nearly 4&nbsp;miles (6&nbsp;km) to [[New Jalpaiguri]] (NJP) to meet the new broad gauge line there.<ref name=DHRsoc/> It opened for freight that year and for passengers in 1964. The loco shed and carriage depot at Siliguri Junction relocated to NJP.
  
DHR remained closed for 18 months during the hostile period of [[Gorkhaland#Gorkhaland movement|Gorkhaland Movement]] in 1988&ndash;1989.<ref name=DHRsoc/> DHR was declared a [[World Heritage Site]] by [[UNESCO]] in 1999, becoming only the second railway in the world to have this honour bestowed upon it,<ref name=heritageunesco>{{cite web
+
DHR remained closed for 18 months during the hostile period of [[Gorkhaland#Gorkhaland movement|Gorkhaland Movement]] in 1988&ndash;1989.<ref name=DHRsoc/> [[UNESCO]] declared DHR a [[World Heritage Site]] in 1999, becoming only the second railway in the world to have this honor bestowed upon it,<ref name=heritageunesco>UNESCO World Heritage Centre, [http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/944 Mountain Railways of India.] Retrieved January 8, 2009.</ref> the first one being [[Semmering Railway]] of [[Austria]] in 1998.
| publisher=UNESCO World Heritage Centre | url=http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/944 | title=Mountain Railways of India | accessdate=2006-04-30
 
}}</ref> the first one being [[Semmering Railway]] of [[Austria]] in 1998.
 
  
 
====A description from 1920s====
 
====A description from 1920s====
 
The Darjeeling Himalayan Railway has long been viewed with affection and enthusiasm by travellers to the region, and the [[Lawrence Dundas, 2nd Marquess of Zetland|Earl of Ronaldshay]] gave the following description of a journey in the early 1920s:
 
The Darjeeling Himalayan Railway has long been viewed with affection and enthusiasm by travellers to the region, and the [[Lawrence Dundas, 2nd Marquess of Zetland|Earl of Ronaldshay]] gave the following description of a journey in the early 1920s:
  
<blockquote>"Siliguri is palpably a place of meeting.[.....] The discovery that here the metre gauge system ends and the two foot gauge of the Darjeeling-Himalayan railway begins, confirms what all these things hint at.[....]One steps into a railway carriage which might easily be mistaken for a toy, and the whimsical idea seizes hold of one that one has accidentally stumbled into Lilliput. With a noisy fuss out of all proportion to its size the engine gives a jerk - and starts.[....] No special mechanical device such as a rack is employed - unless, indeed, one can so describe the squat and stolid hill-man who sits perched over the forward buffers of the engine and scatters sand on the rails when the wheels of the engine lose their grip of the metals and race, with the noise of a giant spring running down when the control has been removed. Sometimes we cross our own track after completing the circuit of a cone, at others we zigzag backwards and forwards; but always we climb at a steady gradient - so steady that if one embarks in a trolley at Ghum, the highest point on the line, the initial push supplies all the energy necessary to carry one to the bottom." <ref>The Earl of Ronaldshay ''Lands of the Thunderbolt. Sikhim, Chumbi and Bhutan'' (London: Constable & Company) 1923 pp10-12</ref></blockquote>
+
<blockquote>Siliguri is palpably a place of meeting. [] The discovery that here the metre gauge system ends and the two foot gauge of the Darjeeling-Himalayan railway begins, confirms what all these things hint at. [] One steps into a railway carriage which might easily be mistaken for a toy, and the whimsical idea seizes hold of one that one has accidentally stumbled into Lilliput. With a noisy fuss out of all proportion to its size the engine gives a jerk--and starts. [] No special mechanical device such as a rack is employed - unless, indeed, one can so describe the squat and stolid hill-man who sits perched over the forward buffers of the engine and scatters sand on the rails when the wheels of the engine lose their grip of the metals and race, with the noise of a giant spring running down when the control has been removed. Sometimes we cross our own track after completing the circuit of a cone, at others we zigzag backwards and forwards; but always we climb at a steady gradient--so steady that if one embarks in a trolley at Ghum, the highest point on the line, the initial push supplies all the energy necessary to carry one to the bottom.<ref>The Earl of Ronaldshay ''Lands of the Thunderbolt: Sikhim, Chumbi and Bhutan'' (London: Constable & Company, 1923), 10-12.</ref></blockquote>
 
 
  
 
<!--{{credits|History_of_Darjeeling_Himalayan_Railway|165598918}}—>
 
<!--{{credits|History_of_Darjeeling_Himalayan_Railway|165598918}}—>
  
 
+
===The Darjeeling Himalayan Railway Route===
===The Route===
 
 
{{wide image|Darjeeling Himalayan Railway panorama.jpg|700px}}
 
{{wide image|Darjeeling Himalayan Railway panorama.jpg|700px}}
[[Image:Agony point 1921.jpg|thumb|300px|A tight loop (Agony Point) on the Darjeeling Himalayan Railway.]]
+
[[Image:Agony point 1921.jpg|thumb|200px|A tight loop (Agony Point) on the Darjeeling Himalayan Railway.]]
[[Image:Darjeeling Himalayan Railway.jpg|thumb|250px|Toy Train approaching Darjeeling, taking water.]]
+
[[Image:Darjeeling Himalayan Railway.jpg|thumb|200px|Toy Train approaching Darjeeling, taking water.]]
*New Jalpaiguri - the railway was extended to the south in 1964 to meet the new [[Broad gauge]] to [[Assam]]. Where the two met, New Jalpaiguri was created.
+
*New Jalpaiguri: The railway extended to the south in 1964 to meet the new [[Broad gauge]] to [[Assam]]. Where the two met, New Jalpaiguri came into existence.
 
+
*Siliguri Town: Original southern terminus of the line.
*Siliguri Town - original southern terminus of the line.
+
*Siliguri Junction: Became a major station only when a new metre-gauge line had been built to Assam in the early 1950s.
 
+
*Sukna: This station marks the change in the landscape from the flat plains to the wooded lower slopes of the mountains. The gradient of the railway changes dramatically.
*Siliguri Junction - became a major station only when a new metre-gauge line was built to Assam in the early 1950s
 
 
 
*Sukna - this station marks the change in the landscape from the flat plains to the wooded lower slopes of the mountains. The gradient of the railway changes dramatically.
 
 
 
Loop No.1 was in the woods above Sukna. It was removed after flood damage in 1991. The site is now lost in the forest.
 
 
 
*Rangtong
 
 
 
A short distance above Rangtong there is a water tank. This was a better position for the tank than in the station, both in terms of water supply and distance between other water tanks.
 
  
When Loop 2 was removed in 1942, again following flood damage, a new reverse, No.1, was added, creating the longest reverse run.
+
'''Loop No. 1''' lay in the woods above Sukna. Removed after flood damage in 1991, the site has been lost in the forest.
  
Loop No.3 is at Chunbatti. This is now the lowest loop.
+
*Rangtong: A short distance above Rangtong sits a water tank. That proved a better position for the tank than in the station, both in terms of water supply and distance between other water tanks.
  
Reverses No.2 & 3 are between Chunbatti and Tindharia.
+
When the company removed '''Loop 2''' in 1942 following flood damage, they added a new reverse, No.1, creating the longest reverse run.
  
*[[Tindharia]] - this is a major station on the line as below the station is the workshops. There is also an office for the engineers and a large locomotive shed, all on a separate site.
+
'''Loop No. 3''' sits at Chunbatti. That now constitutes the lowest loop.
  
Immediately above the station are three sidings; these were used to inspect the carriage while the locomotive was changed, before the train continued towards Darjeeling.
+
:Reverses No. 2 & 3 lay between Chunbatti and Tindharia.
  
Agony Point is the name given to loop No.4. It comes from the shape of the loop which comes to an apex which is the tightest curve on the line.
+
:*[[Tindharia]]: A major station on the line as below the station sits the workshops; also an office for the engineers and a large locomotive shed, all on a separate site.
  
*Gayabari
+
:Immediately above the station sit three sidings, used to inspect the carriage while the locomotive changed, before the train continued towards Darjeeling.
  
Reverse No.6 is the last reverse on the climb.
+
'''Loop No. 4''' has been named Agony Point, deriving from the shape of the loop coming to an apex, the tightest curve on the line.
  
*Mahanadi
+
:*Gayabari
 +
:Reverse No. 6 constitutes the last reverse on the climb.
  
*Kurseong - There is a shed here and a few sidings adjacent to the main line, but the station proper is a dead end. Up trains must reverse out of the station (across a busy road junction) before they can continue on their climb. It is said that the station was built this way so that the train could enter a secure yard and stay there while the passengers left the train for refreshments.
+
:*Mahanadi
  
Above Kurseong station, the railway runs through the bazaar. Trains skirt the front of shops and market stalls on this busy stretch of road.
+
:*Kurseong: A shed stands here and a few sidings adjacent to the main line, but the station proper serves as a dead end. Up trains must reverse out of the station (across a busy road junction) before they can continue on their climb. The station had been built that way so that the train could enter a secure yard and stay there while the passengers left the train for refreshments.
  
*Tung
+
:Above Kurseong station, the railway runs through the bazaar. Trains skirt the front of shops and market stalls on this busy stretch of road.
  
*Dilaram
+
:*Tung
 +
:*Dilaram
 +
:*Sonada
 +
:*Rangbul
 +
:*Jor Bungalow
 +
:*Ghum—Summit of the line and highest station in India. Now includes a museum on the first floor of the station building with larger exhibits in the old goods yard.
  
*Sonada
+
:Batasia Loop
  
*Rangbul
+
:*Darjeeling: The furthest reach of the line went to Darjeeling Bazaar, a goods-only line and now lost under the road surface and small buildings.
 
 
*Jor Bungalow
 
 
 
*Ghum - Summit of the line and highest station in India. Now includes a museum on the first floor of the station building with larger exhibits in the old goods yard.
 
 
 
Batasia Loop
 
 
 
*Darjeeling
 
 
 
The furthest reach of the line was to Darjeeling Bazaar, a goods-only line and now lost under the road surface and small buildings.
 
  
 
===Locomotives===
 
===Locomotives===
[[Image:DHR 787 at Siliguri Shed 05-02-18 19.jpeg|thumb|No.787 after conversion to oil firing.]]
+
[[Image:DHR 787 at Siliguri Shed 05-02-18 19.jpeg|thumb|right|200px|No.787 after conversion to oil firing.]]
[[Image:DHR 778 05-05-01 15.jpeg|thumb|No.778 hauling a train on the Ffestiniog Railway.]]
+
[[Image:DHR 778 05-05-01 15.jpeg|thumb|right|200px|No.778 hauling a train on the Ffestiniog Railway.]]
All the [[steam locomotive]]s currently in use on the railway are of the 'B' Class, a design built between 1889 and 1925. A total of 34 were built but by 2005 only 12 remained on the railway and in use (or under repair).
+
All the [[steam locomotive]]s currently in use on the railway have the "B" Class rating, a design built between 1889 and 1925. A total of thirty four had been built; by 2005 only twelve remained on the railway and in use (or under repair).
 
 
No.787 has been rebuilt with oil firing. This was originally installed to work on the same principle as that used on Nilgiri Mountain Railway No.37395. To operate the [[Oil burner (engine)|oil burner]] and an electrically driven feed pump, a diesel-powered generator was fitted and to power the braking system, a diesel-powered compressor was fitted. Additionally the locomotive was fitted with a feed water heater. The overall result was a dramatic change in the appearance of the locomotive.
 
 
 
In March 2001, No.794 was transferred to the [[Matheran Hill Railway]] to allow a 'Joy Train' (Steam-hauled tourist train) to be operated on that railway. It did not, however, enter service there until May 2002.
 
  
Only one DHR steam locomotive has been taken out of India, No.778 (originally No.19). After many years out of use in an American museum, it was sold to an enthusiast in the UK and restored to working order. It is now based on a private railway in [[Oxfordshire]] but has run on the [[Ffestiniog Railway]].
+
No. 787 has been rebuilt with oil firing, originally installed to work on the same principle as that used on Nilgiri Mountain Railway No.37395. To operate the [[Oil burner (engine)|oil burner]] and an electrically driven feed pump, mechanics fitted a diesel-powered generator; a diesel-powered compressor fitted and to power the braking system. Additionally the locomotive had been fitted with a feed water heater. The overall result proved a dramatic change in the appearance of the locomotive.
  
Two diesel locomotives are in use, Nos.604 & 605. They are both members of the [[Indian Class NDM6|NDM6]] class. Both were originally intended for use on the Matheran Hill Railway and are identical to the four locomotives actually delivered there.
+
In March 2001, the company transferred No. 794 to the [[Matheran Hill Railway]] to allow a "Joy Train" (Steam-hauled tourist train) to be operated on that railway. The train entered service there until May 2002. Only one DHR steam locomotive has been taken out of India, No. 778 (originally No. 19). After many years out of use in an American museum, an enthusiast in the UK bought the train, restoring to working order. Now based on a private railway in [[Oxfordshire]], the traqin has run on the [[Ffestiniog Railway]].
  
In 1910 the railway purchased the third [[Garratt]] locomotive built, a D class 0-4-0+0-4-0.
+
Two diesel locomotives, Nos. 604 & 605, both belong to the [[Indian Class NDM6|NDM6]] class. Both had been originally intended for use on the Matheran Hill Railway, identical to the four locomotives actually delivered there. In 1910 the railway purchased the third [[Garratt]] locomotive built, a D class 0-4-0+0-4-0.
  
 
===In popular culture===
 
===In popular culture===
 
 
The Darjeeling Himalayan Railway has long been viewed with affection and enthusiasm by travellers to the region, and the [[Lawrence Dundas, 2nd Marquess of Zetland|Earl of Ronaldshay]] gave the following description of a journey in the early 1920s:
 
The Darjeeling Himalayan Railway has long been viewed with affection and enthusiasm by travellers to the region, and the [[Lawrence Dundas, 2nd Marquess of Zetland|Earl of Ronaldshay]] gave the following description of a journey in the early 1920s:
[[Image:Toy Train.jpg|thumb|Inside of the toy train]]
+
[[Image:Toy Train.jpg|thumb|right|200px|Inside of the toy train]]
<blockquote>"Siliguri is palpably a place of meeting.[.....] The discovery that here the metre gauge system ends and the two foot gauge of the Darjeeling-Himalayan railway begins, confirms what all these things hint at.[....]One steps into a railway carriage which might easily be mistaken for a toy, and the whimsical idea seizes hold of one that one has accidentally stumbled into Lilliput. With a noisy fuss out of all proportion to its size the engine gives a jerk - and starts.[....] No special mechanical device such as a rack is employed - unless, indeed, one can so describe the squat and stolid hill-man who sits perched over the forward buffers of the engine and scatters sand on the rails when the wheels of the engine lose their grip of the metals and race, with the noise of a giant spring running down when the control has been removed. Sometimes we cross our own track after completing the circuit of a cone, at others we zigzag backwards and forwards; but always we climb at a steady gradient - so steady that if one embarks in a trolley at [[Ghum]], the highest point on the line, the initial push supplies all the energy necessary to carry one to the bottom."<ref>The Earl of Ronaldshay ''Lands of the Thunderbolt. Sikhim, Chumbi and Bhutan'' (London: Constable & Company) 1923 pp10-12</ref></blockquote>
+
<blockquote>Siliguri is palpably a place of meeting. [] The discovery that here the metre gauge system ends and the two foot gauge of the Darjeeling-Himalayan railway begins, confirms what all these things hint at. [] One steps into a railway carriage which might easily be mistaken for a toy, and the whimsical idea seizes hold of one that one has accidentally stumbled into Lilliput. With a noisy fuss out of all proportion to its size the engine gives a jerk--and starts. [] No special mechanical device such as a rack is employed--unless, indeed, one can so describe the squat and stolid hill-man who sits perched over the forward buffers of the engine and scatters sand on the rails when the wheels of the engine lose their grip of the metals and race, with the noise of a giant spring running down when the control has been removed. Sometimes we cross our own track after completing the circuit of a cone, at others we zigzag backwards and forwards; but always we climb at a steady gradient--so steady that if one embarks in a trolley at [[Ghum]], the highest point on the line, the initial push supplies all the energy necessary to carry one to the bottom."<ref>The Earl of Ronaldshay, ''Lands of the Thunderbolt. Sikhim, Chumbi and Bhutan'' (London: Constable & Company, 1923), 10-12.</ref></blockquote>
 
 
The trip up to Darjeeling on railway has changed little since that time, and continues to delight travellers and rail enthusiasts, so much so that it has its own preservation and support group, the [[Darjeeling Himalayan Railway Society]].<ref name=DHRSintro>{{cite web
 
| url = http://www.dhrs.org/home.htm
 
| title = Welcome to the DHRS
 
| accessdate = 2007-03-09
 
| work =
 
| publisher = Darjeeling Himalayan Railway Society
 
}}</ref>
 
  
Several [[Bollywood]] movies have portrayed the railway. Especially popular was the song ''[[Mere sapno ki rani]]'' from the film ''[[Aradhana (1969 film)|Aradhana]]'' where the protagonist [[Rajesh Khanna]] tries to woo heroine [[Sharmila Tagore]] who was riding in the train.<ref name=aradhana1>{{cite web
+
The trip up to Darjeeling on railway has changed little since that time, and continues to delight travellers and rail enthusiasts, so much so that it has its own preservation and support group, the [[Darjeeling Himalayan Railway Society]].<ref name=DHRSintro>DHRS, [http://www.dhrs.org/home.htm Welcome to the DHRS.] Retrieved May 9, 2007.</ref>
| url = http://www.outlooktraveller.com/aspscripts/travelogue.asp?dest=Darjeeling
 
| title = Darjeeling: Where the journey is the destination
 
| accessdate = 2007-03-09
 
| last = Mahalingam
 
| first = Sudha
 
| year = 2001
 
| month = March
 
| work = Travelogues. Outlook Traveller.
 
| publisher = Outlook Publishing (India) Private Limited
 
}}</ref><ref name=aradhana2>{{cite web
 
| url = http://www.indialine.com/travel/trains/darjeeling-toy-train.html
 
| title = Darjeeling Toy Train
 
| accessdate = 2007-03-09
 
| work = Theme India: [http://www.indialine.com/travel/trains/ Train Tourism in India]
 
| publisher = IndiaLine
 
}}</ref> Other notable films include ''[[Jhumroo]]'', ''[[Parineeta]]'' and ''[[Raju Ban Gaya Gentleman]]''. Director [[Wes Anderson]] has announced that he will once again be joining [[Owen Wilson]] to co-direct a movie entitled ''[[The Darjeeling Limited]]''.<ref name=imdb>{{cite web
 
| url = http://imdb.com/title/tt0838221/
 
| title = The Darjeeling Limited
 
| accessdate = 2007-03-09
 
| publisher = Internet Movie Database Inc.
 
}}</ref> The movie will follow three brothers, (Owen Wilson, [[Adrien Brody]], and [[Jason Schwartzman]]), as they travel throughout India on the railway.
 
  
 
+
Several [[Bollywood]] movies have portrayed the railway. The song ''[[Mere sapno ki rani]]'' from the film ''[[Aradhana (1969 film)|Aradhana]]'' where the protagonist [[Rajesh Khanna]] tries to woo heroine [[Sharmila Tagore]] who rode in the train proved especially popular.<ref name=aradhana1>Sudha Mahalingam, [http://www.outlooktraveller.com/aspscripts/travelogue.asp?dest=Darjeeling Darjeeling: Where the journey is the destination.] Retrieved May 9, 2007.</ref><ref name=aradhana2>Theme India, [http://www.indialine.com/travel/trains/darjeeling-toy-train.html Darjeeling Toy Train.] Retrieved May 9, 2007.</ref> Other notable films include ''[[Jhumroo]],'' ''[[Parineeta]],'' and ''[[Raju Ban Gaya Gentleman]]''. Director [[Wes Anderson]] directed a film called ''[[The Darjeeling Limited]]''.<ref name=imdb>Internet Movie Database, [http://imdb.com/title/tt0838221/ The Darjeeling Limited.] Retrieved May 9, 2007.</ref> The movie will follow three brothers, (Owen Wilson, [[Adrien Brody]], and [[Jason Schwartzman]]), as they travel throughout India on the railway.
<!--===See also===
 
{{World Heritage Sites in India}}
 
{{Darjeeling}}—>
 
 
 
<!--{{credits|Darjeeling_Himalayan_Railway|165598844}}—>
 
  
 
==Nilgiri Mountain Railway ==
 
==Nilgiri Mountain Railway ==
[[Image:NMR up train at Kateri Road 05-02-28 04.jpeg|thumb|A typical Nilgiri train on the rack section]]
+
The '''Nilgiri Mountain Railway (NMR)''' connects the town of [[Mettupalayam]] with the [[hill station]] of [[Udagamandalam]], in the [[Nilgiri Hills]] of southern India, both in the state of [[Tamil Nadu]]. The only [[rack railway]] in [[India]], the NMR uses the [[Rack_railway#Abt|Abt]] system.
The '''Nilgiri Mountain Railway (NMR)''' connects the town of [[Mettupalayam]] with the [[hill station]] of [[Udagamandalam]], in the [[Nilgiri Hills]] of southern India. Both towns are in the state of [[Tamil Nadu]]. It is the only [[rack railway]] in [[India]], and uses the [[Rack_railway#Abt|Abt]] system.
 
  
 
===History===
 
===History===
[[Image:NilgirisMountainRailwayPlaque036.JPG|thumb|Plaque commemorating NMR as World Heritage Site at [[Coonoor]] railway station]]The Nilgiri Mountain railway is one of the oldest [[mountain railway]]s in India. Under consideration since 1845, the line was finally opened by the [[United Kingdom|British]] in 1899, and was initially operated by the [[Madras Railway Company]]. The railway is one of the few in the world dependent on [[steam locomotive]]s.{{Fact|date=September 2007}}
+
[[Image:NilgirisMountainRailwayPlaque036.JPG|thumb|right|200px|Plaque commemorating NMR as World Heritage Site at [[Coonoor]] railway station]]
 +
The Nilgiri Mountain railway stands as one of the oldest [[mountain railway]]s in India. Under consideration since 1845, the [[United Kingdom|British]] finally opened the line in 1899. Initially operated by the [[Madras Railway Company]], the railway numbers among a hand full in the world that depends on [[steam locomotive]]s.
  
The [[Palghat]] division of the [[Indian Railways]], which operates the NMR, incurs an annual shortfall of Rs 4 [[crore]]s, (~1 million USD). During the Centenary celebrations of Nilgiri Mountain Railway in 1999 [[Railway Minister]] [[Nitish Kumar]] announced that the line would soon be electrified.
+
The [[Palghat]] division of the [[Indian Railways]], which operates the NMR, incurs an annual shortfall of Rs 4 [[crore]]s, (~1 million USD). During the Centenary celebrations of Nilgiri Mountain Railway in 1999 [[Railway Minister]] [[Nitish Kumar]] announced that the line would soon be electrified. In July 2005, [[UNESCO]] added the NMR as an extension to the [[World Heritage Site]] of [[Darjeeling Himalayan Railway]]<ref>UNESCO, [http://whc.unesco.org/en/news/135 NMR added as a World Heritage Site.] Retrieved January 8, 2009.</ref> after it satisfied the necessary criteria, thus forcing abandonment of modernization plans.  
 
 
In July 2005, [[UNESCO]] added the NMR as an extension to the [[World Heritage Site]] of [[Darjeeling Himalayan Railway]]<ref>[http://whc.unesco.org/en/news/135 NMR added as a World Heritage Site]</ref> after it satisfied the necessary criteria, thus forcing abandonment of modernisation plans.  
 
  
 
===Operation===
 
===Operation===
The NMR track is {{1m}} gauge and the railway is isolated from other narrow gauge lines.
+
[[Image:Rack and pinion animation.gif|right|160px|thumb|right|200px|functioning of the [[rack and pinion]].]]
 +
The NMR track uses {{1m}} gauge, isolated from other narrow gauge lines. Below [[Coonoor]] the line uses the [[Rack railway|rack and pinion]] system to climb the steep [[gradient]]. Steam rack locomotives operate on the rack section [[train]]s manufactured by the [[Swiss Locomotive and Machine Works]] of [[Winterthur]] in [[Switzerland]], always marshaled at the downhill (Mettupalayam) end of the train. The average gradient in that rack section measures 1 in 24.5, with a maximum of 1 in 12.
  
[[Image:Rack and pinion animation.gif|right|160px|thumb|functioning of the [[rack and pinion]].]]
+
As of 2007, one train a day passes over the rack section, starting from Mettupalayam at 7.10 a.m. reaching Ooty at noon. Return train starts from Mettupalayam at 3 p.m. and reaching Ooty at 6:35 p.m. The train has a scheduled trip both ways connecting it to the [[Nilgiri Express]] (Mettupplalayam-Chennai) with the following time schedule:
Below [[Coonoor]] the line uses the [[Rack railway|rack and pinion]] system to climb the steep [[gradient]]. On the rack section [[train]]s are operated by steam rack locomotives manufactured by the [[Swiss Locomotive and Machine Works]] of [[Winterthur]] in [[Switzerland]], which are always marshalled at the downhill (Mettupalayam) end of the train.
 
  
The average gradient in this rack section is 1 in 24.5, with a maximum of 1 in 12.
+
:Arrival (from Chennai): 5:30 a.m. approx <br />Departure (to Chennai): 7:30 p.m.
  
As of 2007, there is one train a day over the rack section, starting from Mettupalayam at 7.10 AM reaches Ooty at noon. Return train starts from Mettupalayam at 3 PM and reaching Ooty at 6.35 PM. The train is scheduled both ways connecting it to the [[Nilgiri Express]] (Mettupplalayam-Chennai) whose timings are :
+
The railway recommends booking tickets for NMR in advance especially during peak season. Ticket booking, similar to other conventional trains, may be done via official website also.<br />
 
 
Arrival (from Chennai) : 5.30 AM approx <br />Departure (to Chennai) : 7.30 PM
 
 
 
It is advisable to book tickets for NMR in advance especially during peak season. Ticket booking is similar to other conventional trains and can be done via official website also.<br />
 
  
 
Station code : UAM<br />
 
Station code : UAM<br />
 
Official name of the train: Udagamandalam-Mettupalayam Passenger<br />
 
Official name of the train: Udagamandalam-Mettupalayam Passenger<br />
 
Fare - 1st class : Rs. 135<br /> 2nd class : Rs. 25
 
Fare - 1st class : Rs. 135<br /> 2nd class : Rs. 25
 +
[[Image:NMR up train at Kateri Road 05-02-28 04.jpeg|thumb|right|200px|A typical Nilgiri train on the rack section.]]
  
 
Between Coonoor and Udagamandalam the train is operated by a YDM4 [[diesel locomotive]] using conventional [[rail adhesion]] principles. On this section the locomotive is always at the Coonoor end of the train as although the line is not steep enough to need a rack rail the ruling gradient out of Coonoor is still very steep at 1 in 25.
 
Between Coonoor and Udagamandalam the train is operated by a YDM4 [[diesel locomotive]] using conventional [[rail adhesion]] principles. On this section the locomotive is always at the Coonoor end of the train as although the line is not steep enough to need a rack rail the ruling gradient out of Coonoor is still very steep at 1 in 25.
Line 285: Line 148:
  
 
===The Route===
 
===The Route===
 +
[[Image:Nilgiri ooty railway station .JPG|thumb|right|200px|A excited crowd receives the Nilgiri Mountain Train at the Ooty station.]]
 
The train covers a distance of 46 km (28 miles), travels through 208 curves, 16 tunnels, and 250 bridges. The uphill journey takes around 290 minutes and the downhill journey 215 minutes.
 
The train covers a distance of 46 km (28 miles), travels through 208 curves, 16 tunnels, and 250 bridges. The uphill journey takes around 290 minutes and the downhill journey 215 minutes.
  
[[Image:Nilgiri ooty railway station .JPG|thumb|A excited crowd receives the Nilgiri Mountain Train at the Ooty station]]
+
*[[Mettupalayam, Coimbatore|Mettupalayam]]: 1069 ft above sea level; Junction with the [[Broad Gauge]] line from [[Coimbatore]]. Passengers cross the platform to the Nilgiri train. A small locomotive shed, and the carriage workshops for the line, operate here.
 
 
*[[Mettupalayam, Coimbatore|Mettupalayam]] - 0km, 1069ft above sea level - Junction with the [[Broad Gauge]] line from [[Coimbatore]]. Passengers cross the platform to the Nilgiri train. There is a small locomotive shed here and the carriage workshops for the line.
 
 
 
::Leaving Mettupalayum, the line is adhesion worked and actually drops for a short distance before crossing a wide river called Bhavaani and starting to climb gently.
 
  
*Kallar - 8km, 1260ft - Closed as a passenger station, this is where the rack rail begins. As the train leaves the station, the gradient is 1 in 12.
+
::Leaving Mettupalayum, the line, adhesion worked, actually drops for a short distance before crossing a wide river called Bhavaani and starting to climb gently.
  
*Adderly - 13km, 2390ft - Closed as a passenger station but is still a [[water stop]].
+
*Kallar: 8 km, 1260 ft; Closed as a passenger station, the rack rail begins here. As the train leaves the station, the gradient measures 1 in 12.
  
[[Image:NMR train leaving Hillgrove 05-02-26 48.jpeg|thumb|A typical Nilgiri train leaving Hillgrove Station]]
+
*Adderly: 13 km, 2390 ft; Closed as a passenger station but still used as a [[water stop]].
*Hillgrove - 18km, 3580ft - Block post and water stop as well as having refreshments for passengers.
 
  
*Runneymede - 21km, 4612ft - Closed as a passenger station but is still a water stop.
+
*Hillgrove: 18 km, 3580 ft; Block post and water stop as well as having refreshments for passengers.
  
*Kateri Road - 25km, 5070ft - Closed as a passenger station, trains do not stop here.
+
*Runneymede: 21 km, 4612 ft; Closed as a passenger station but still used as a water stop.
 +
[[Image:NMR train leaving Hillgrove 05-02-26 48.jpeg||thumb|right|200px|A typical Nilgiri train leaving Hillgrove Station.]]
  
*Coonoor - 28km, 5616ft - main intermediate station on the line at site of the locomotive workshops as well as the top end of the rack rail. Trains must reverse a short distance before continuing their climb to Ooty. It is normal for the locomotive to be changed here with diesel traction being normal for all trains to Ooty.
+
*Kateri Road: 25 km, 5070 ft; Closed as a passenger station. trains never stop here.
  
*[[Wellington, (Cantonment), Tamil Nadu|Wellington]] - 29km, 5804ft
+
*Coonoor: 28 km, 5616 ft; main intermediate station on the line at site of the locomotive workshops as well as the top end of the rack rail. Trains must reverse a short distance before continuing their climb to Ooty. Normally the locomotive changes here with diesel traction being normal for all trains to Ooty.
  
[[Image:Wellington railway station.JPG|thumb|150px|The Wellington railway station]]
+
*[[Wellington, (Cantonment), Tamil Nadu|Wellington]]: 29 km, 5804 ft
  
*[[Aruvankadu]] - 32km, 6144ft
+
*[[Aruvankadu]]: 32 km, 6144 ft
  
*[[Ketti]] - 38km, 6864ft
+
*[[Ketti]]: 38 km, 6864 ft
  
*[[Lovedale, India|Lovedale]] - 42km, 7694ft
+
*[[Lovedale, India|Lovedale]]: 42 km, 7694 ft
[[Image:Lovedale railway station.JPG|thumb|150px|The Lovedale railway station]]
 
  
 
::From a short distance before Lovedale the line descends all the way into Ooty.
 
::From a short distance before Lovedale the line descends all the way into Ooty.
  
*[[Ooty]] - 46km, 7228ft (2200 m).
+
*[[Ooty]]: 46 km, 7228 ft (2200 m).
 
 
===See also===
 
*[[Ootacamund]]
 
*[[Indian Railways]]
 
  
===References===
+
===Gallery===
<references/>
+
<gallery>
 
+
Image:Lovedale railway station.JPG|The Lovedale railway station
===External links===
+
Image:Wellington railway station.JPG|The Wellington railway station
*[http://www.flickr.com/photos/greenroutes/sets/72057594100248640/ A photo journey that will take you back in time ]
+
</gallery>
*[http://www.indianrail.gov.in/hill_2.html Indian railways site on the NMR]
 
*[http://www.railmuseum.org/nmr/ Railmuseum]
 
*[http://indiasteam.tripod.com/nmr.htm Images and info]
 
*[http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/life/2005/09/16/stories/2005091600080200.htm Toy train chugs on ]
 
*[http://twins.free.fr/travel/photos%20inde/page%202/pages/train%20ooty%202_jpg.htm Ooty train Photographs]
 
*[http://deepsan.livejournal.com/93336.html 20 photos between Ooty and Coonoor]
 
*[http://www.hindu.com/yw/2005/07/29/stories/2005072900030100.htm The toy train chugs on]
 
* International Working Steam  [http://www.steam.dial.pipex.com/internat.htm]
 
{{World Heritage Sites in India}}
 
 
 
<!--{{credits|Nilgiri Mountain Railway|162040213}}—>
 
  
 
==Kalka-Shimla Railway==
 
==Kalka-Shimla Railway==
 +
[[Image:KSR_Steam_special_at_Taradevi_05-02-13_56.jpeg|thumb|200px|Shivalik Deluxe Express in Taradevi Station]]
  
The '''Kalka-Shimla Railway''' is a {{2ft6in}} [[narrow gauge railway|narrow gauge]] [[railway]] in North-West [[India]] travelling along a mostly mountainous route from [[Kalka]] to [[Shimla]]. It is known for breathtaking views of the hills and surrounding vilages, and for having the greatest incline over its 96km stretch.
+
The '''Kalka-Shimla Railway,''' a {{2ft6in}} [[narrow gauge railway|narrow gauge]] [[railway]] in North-West [[India]], travels along a mostly mountainous route from [[Kalka]] to [[Shimla]]. Known for breathtaking views of the hills and surrounding vilages, the KSR haves the greatest incline over its 96 km stretch. The British discovered Shimla shortly after the first Anglo-Gurkha war. By the 1830s, Shimla had already developed as a major base for the British. It became the Summer Capital of British India in 1864.  
[[Image:KSR_Steam_special_at_Taradevi_05-02-13_56.jpeg|thumb|440px|Shivalik Deluxe Express in Taradevi Station]]
 
 
 
===History===
 
Shimla was discovered by the British shortly after the first Anglo-Gurkha war. By the 1830s, Shimla had already developed as a major base for the British. It became the Summer Capital of British India in 1864.  
 
  
 
===Construction and initial operation===
 
===Construction and initial operation===
[[Bhalkoo]], the "illiterate genius" had played a vital role in the construction of the Kalka-Shimla rail line. The contract for construction was awarded to the Delhi-Umbala Company in 1898 at an estimated cost of Rs&nbsp;86,78,500, however, the cost doubled during execution of the project and it was finally purchased by the state in 1906 for Rs&nbsp;1,71,07,748. The {{km to mi|96.54|abbr=yes}} line was opened for traffic November 9, 1903. Because of the high capital and maintenance cost, coupled with peculiar working conditions, the Kalka-Shimla Railway was allowed to charge fares that were higher than the prevailing tariffs on other lines. However, even this was not good enough to sustain the company and the Government had to purchase it on January 1, 1906.
+
[[Bhalkoo]], the "illiterate genius" had played a vital role in the construction of the Kalka-Shimla rail line. In 1898, the Delhi-Umbala Company won the contract for construction of the railroad at an estimated cost of Rs&nbsp;86,78,500. The cost doubled during execution of the project, finally purchased by the state in 1906 for Rs&nbsp;1,71,07,748. The {{km to mi|96.54|abbr=yes}} line opened for traffic November 9, 1903. Because of the high capital and maintenance cost, coupled with peculiar working conditions, the government allowed the Kalka-Shimla Railway allowed to charge fares higher than the prevailing tariffs on other lines. Even that failed to sustain the company, the government stepping in to purchase it on January 1, 1906.
[[Image:Image(100).jpg|thumb|440px|Shivalik Express halts at the [[Solan]] Station]]
+
<!--{{sectstub}}—>
 
 
====20th century====
 
{{sectstub}}
 
  
==== 21st century ====
+
==== Twenty-first century ====
For about a week starting on September 11 2007, an expert team from [[UNESCO]] will visit the railway to review and inspect the railway for possible selection as a [[World Heritage Site]]. After the team submits its report, the status of the railway's selection would likely be made in July 2008. If the selection is made, the railway would become the fourth rail property in India to be selected.<ref>{{cite news| url=http://www.hindustantimes.com/storypage/storypage.aspx?id=20779f05-acd4-4b94-b611-98119921f6b8&MatchID1=4502&TeamID1=2&TeamID2=6&MatchType1=1&SeriesID1=1122&PrimaryID=4502&Headline=Toy+train+set+to+enter+UNESCO+heritage+list| title=Toy train set to enter UNESCO heritage list| publisher=Hindustan Times| author=Press Trust of India| date=2007-08-08| accessdate=2007-08-09| }}</ref>In mid-August 2007, the government of [[Himachal Pradesh]] declared the railway a heritage property in preparation for its review in September.<ref>{{cite news| url=http://www.hindu.com/thehindu/holnus/004200708130322.htm| title=HP declares Kalka-Shimla railway as 'heritage' property| date=2007-08-13| publisher=The Hindu| accessdate=2007-08-13| }}</ref>
+
[[Image:Image(100).jpg|thumb|200px|Shivalik Express halts at the [[Solan]] Station]]
 +
For about a week starting on September 11, 2007, an expert team from [[UNESCO]] visited the railway to review and inspect the railway for possible selection as a [[World Heritage Site]]. After the team submits its report, the status of the railway's selection would likely be made in July 2008. If wining the selection, the railway would become the fourth rail property in India for UNESCO World Heritage Site designation.<ref>Hindustan Times, [http://www.hindustantimes.com/storypage/storypage.aspx?id=20779f05-acd4-4b94-b611-98119921f6b8&MatchID1=4502&TeamID1=2&TeamID2=6&MatchType1=1&SeriesID1=1122&PrimaryID=4502&Headline=Toy+train+set+to+enter+UNESCO+heritage+list Toy train set to enter UNESCO heritage list.] Retrieved August 9, 2007.</ref> In mid-August 2007, the government of [[Himachal Pradesh]] declared the railway a heritage property in preparation for its review in September.<ref>The Hindu, [http://www.hindu.com/thehindu/holnus/004200708130322.htm| title=HP declares Kalka-Shimla railway as "heritage" property.] Retrieved August </ref>
  
=== Route ===
+
===Route===
[[Image:KSR_Train_on_a_big_bridge_05-02-12_71.jpeg|thumb|350px|A typical passenger train on one of the line's big bridges]]
+
The government built the Kalka-Shimla Railway to connect Shimla, the summer capital of India during the [[British Raj]], with the Indian rail system. Now, [[Shimla]] serves as the capital city of Himachal Pradesh, while the town of Kalka lay within the [[Panchkula]] district of Haryana. Spectacular scenery along the whole route, and the marvels of its construction, keeps the traveler on the line spell bound. On leaving Kalka, {{m to ft|656}} above sea level, the railway enters the foothills and immediately commences its climb.  
The Kalka-Shimla Railway was built to connect Shimla, the summer capital of India during the [[British Raj]], with the Indian rail system. Now, [[Shimla]] is the capital city of Himachal Pradesh and Kalka is a town in the [[Panchkula]] district of Haryana. Spectacular scenery along the whole route, and the marvels of its construction, keeps the traveler on this line spell bound. On leaving Kalka, {{m to ft|656}} above sea level, the railway enters the foothills and immediately commences its climb.  
 
[[Image:Er51.JPG|thumb|left|Kalka Railway Station]]<br />
 
  
=== Stations ===
 
 
The route offers a panoramic feast of the picturesque Himalayas from the shivalik foot hills at Kalka to several important points such as Dharampur, Solan, Kandaghat, Taradevi, Barog, Salogra, Summerhill and Shimla at an altitude of {{m to ft|2076}}.
 
The route offers a panoramic feast of the picturesque Himalayas from the shivalik foot hills at Kalka to several important points such as Dharampur, Solan, Kandaghat, Taradevi, Barog, Salogra, Summerhill and Shimla at an altitude of {{m to ft|2076}}.
  
 
=== Engineering ===
 
=== Engineering ===
 +
[[Image:KSR_Train_on_a_big_bridge_05-02-12_71.jpeg|thumb|200px|A typical passenger train on one of the line's big bridges.]]
  
The Kalka Shimla Railway runs through 103 tunnels (one is not in use; so only 102 in service). The longest tunnel is at [[Barog]], and is named after the engineer in charge of construction. Mr Barog apparently committed suicide after making a mistake in laying the alignment. This tunnel is {{m to ft|1143.61}} long and remained for a long time the second longest tunnel on the Indian Railways. It is a straight tunnel, passing through fissured [[sandstone]].  
+
The Kalka Shimla Railway runs through 103 tunnels (one out-of-service; so only 102 in service). The longest tunnel exists at [[Barog]], named after the engineer in charge of construction. Mr Barog apparently committed suicide after making a mistake in laying the alignment. That tunnel measures {{m to ft|1143.61}}, remaining for a long time the second longest tunnel on the Indian Railways. A straight tunnel, it passes through fissured [[sandstone]].  
  
The line has 864 [[bridges]], one of which is a 18.29 metre (60&nbsp;ft) plate girder span and [[steel truss]]. The others are [[viaduct]]s with multi-arched galleries like the ancient [[Ancient Rome|Roman]] [[aqueducts]]. Bridge No. 493, historically known as the "Arch Gallery," situated between Kandaghat and Kanoh stations, is an arch bridge in three stages, constructed with stone masonry. Bridge No. 226; between Sonwara and Dharampur is an arch gallery bridge having 5 tier galleries of multiple spans, constructed with stone masonry and bridging a deep valley surrounded by high peaks.  
+
The line has 864 [[bridges]], one an 18.29 meter (60&nbsp;ft) plate girder span and [[steel truss]]. The others have been constructed as [[viaduct]]s with multi-arched galleries like the ancient [[Ancient Rome|Roman]] [[aqueducts]]. Bridge No. 493, historically known as the "Arch Gallery," situated between Kandaghat and Kanoh stations, has been constructed as an arch bridge in three stages, using stone masonry. Bridge No. 226; between Sonwara and Dharampur, an arch gallery bridge having five tier galleries of multiple spans, has been constructed with stone masonry and bridging a deep valley surrounded by high peaks.  
  
The railway has a ruling gradient of 1 in 25 or 4%. It has 919 curves, the sharpest being 48 degrees (a radius of  37.47&nbsp;m or 122.93 feet). Climbing from {{m to ft|656}}, the line terminates at an elevation of {{m to ft|2076}} at Shimla.
+
The railway has a ruling gradient of 1 in 25 or 4 percent. It has 919 curves, the sharpest being 48 degrees (a radius of  37.47&nbsp;m or 122.93 feet). Climbing from {{m to ft|656}}, the line terminates at an elevation of {{m to ft|2076}} at Shimla.
  
 
=== Locomotives ===
 
=== Locomotives ===
The first locomotives to arrive were two class "B" 0-4-0ST from the famous [[Darjeeling Himalayan Railway]]. These were built as {{2ft}} gauge engines, but were converted to {{2ft6in}} gauge in 1901. They were not large enough for the job, and were sold on in 1908. They were followed by 10 engines with a 0-4-2T wheel arrangement of a slightly larger design, introduced in 1902. These locos weighed 21.5 tons (21.85 [[tonnes]]), and had 30" (762 mm) driving wheels, and 12"x16" (304.8 mm x 406.4 mm) cylinders. They were later classified into the "B" class by the North Western State Railways. All these locos were constructed by the British firm of [[Sharp, Roberts and Company|Sharp Stewart]].
+
[[Image:Er51.JPG|thumb|right|200px|Kalka Railway Station]]
 
+
The first locomotives to arrive were two class "B" 0-4-0ST from the famous [[Darjeeling Himalayan Railway]]. These were built as {{2ft}} gauge engines, but were converted to {{2ft6in}} gauge in 1901. They were not large enough for the job, and were sold on in 1908. They were followed by 10 engines with a 0-4-2T wheel arrangement of a slightly larger design, introduced in 1902. These locos weighed 21.5 tons (21.85 [[tonnes]]), and had 30" (762 mm) driving wheels, and 12" x 16" (304.8 mm x 406.4 mm) cylinders. They were later classified into the "B" class by the North Western State Railways. All these locos were constructed by the British firm of [[Sharp, Roberts and Company|Sharp Stewart]].
Larger locomotives were introduced in the form of an 2-6-2T, of which 30 were built with slight variations between 1904 and 1910. Built by the [[Hunslet Engine Company|Hunslet]] and the [[North British Locomotive Company]], these locomotives were about 35 tons (35.56 tonnes), with 30" (762 mm) drivers and 14"x16" (355.6 mm x 406.4 mm) cylinders. These locomotives, later classed K and K2 by the North Western State Railways, subsequently handled the bulk of the railways traffic during the steam era. A pair of [[Meyer locomotive|Kitson-Meyer]] 2-6-2+2-6-2 articulated locomotives, classed TD, were supplied in 1928. They quickly fell into disfavour, as it often took all day for enough freight to be assembled to justify operating a [[goods train]] hauled by one of these locos. Shippers looking for a faster service started to turn to road transport. These 68 ton (69.09 tonnes) locomotives were soon transferred to the [[Kangra Valley Railway]], and subsequently ended up converted to {{1m}} [[Narrow gauge|gauge]] in [[Pakistan]].
 
 
 
  
=== Trains ===
+
Larger locomotives were introduced in the form of an 2-6-2T, of which 30 were built with slight variations between 1904 and 1910. Built by the [[Hunslet Engine Company|Hunslet]] and the [[North British Locomotive Company]], these locomotives were about 35 tons (35.56 metric tons), with 30" (762 mm) drivers and 14" x 16" (355.6 mm x 406.4 mm) cylinders. These locomotives, later classed K and K2 by the North Western State Railways, subsequently handled the bulk of the railways traffic during the steam era. A pair of [[Meyer locomotive|Kitson-Meyer]] 2-6-2+2-6-2 articulated locomotives, classed TD, were supplied in 1928. They quickly fell into disfavor, as it often took all day for enough freight to be assembled to justify operating a [[goods train]] hauled by one of these locos. Shippers looking for a faster service started to turn to road transport. These 68 ton (69.09 metric tons) locomotives were soon transferred to the [[Kangra Valley Railway]], and subsequently ended up converted to {{1m}} [[Narrow gauge|gauge]] in [[Pakistan]].
[[Image:5.JPG]] [[Image:2312.JPG]]
 
*Shivalik Deluxe Express
 
*Himalayan Queen
 
*Rail Car
 
*Other Local trains
 
  
=== Railcars ===
+
'''Trains'''
 +
:*Shivalik Deluxe Express
 +
:*Himalayan Queen
 +
:*Rail Car
 +
:*Other Local trains
  
Rail cars. which looked like buses on the rail, were used to transport upper class travellers. The fare for these cars  was almost double of the first class ticket. The travel time by these rail cars was less than three hours from Kalka to Simla where as trains used to take between Six to Seven hours to complete this journey.
+
'''Railcars'''
 +
:Rail cars, which looked like buses on the rail, were used to transport upper class travellers. The fare for these cars  was almost double of the first class ticket. The travel time by these rail cars was less than three hours from Kalka to Simla where as trains used to take between Six to Seven hours to complete this journey.
  
=== References ===
+
===Gallery===
* {{cite book| author=Hughes, H.| year=1994| title=Indian Locomotives Part 3, Narrow Gauge, 1863-1940| publisher=The Continental Railway Circle| location=Harrow, UK| isbn=0-9521655-0-3| }}
+
<gallery>
{{reflist}}
+
Image:5.JPG
 
+
Image:2312.JPG
=== External links ===
+
</gallery>
 
 
* http://hill-stations-india.com/hill-trains-india/kalka-shimla-railway.html
 
* http://www.luxury-train-travel-tours-india.com/hill-trains-in-india/kalka-shimla-railway.html
 
* http://www.tribuneindia.com/2003/20031104/himachal.htm#1
 
* http://www.shimla-travel.com/shimla_railway.shtml
 
* http://www.indianadventureportal.com/trains/kalka-shimla-toy-train.html
 
* http://www.outlooktraveller.com/aspscripts/mag_art.asp?magid=214&page=1
 
* http://www.pearcedale.com/c&b/DL.html#indi
 
* http://mikes.railhistory.railfan.net/r019.html
 
*[http://www.tribuneindia.com/2003/20031108/windows/main1.htm Article in The Tribune]
 
*[http://www.toshaliroyalview.com/shimla/travel-guide/kalka-shimla-railway-track/ Article on Kalka Shimla Rail]
 
* International Working Steam  [http://www.steam.dial.pipex.com/internat.htm]
 
 
 
<!--{{credits|Kalka-Shimla_Railway|168977790}}—>
 
  
 
==Matheran Hill Railway==
 
==Matheran Hill Railway==
 
 
[[Image:LBNGR_MR740_05-09-11.jpeg|thumb|Matheran Railway No.740 preserved in the UK.]]
 
[[Image:LBNGR_MR740_05-09-11.jpeg|thumb|Matheran Railway No.740 preserved in the UK.]]
  
'''Matheran Hill Railway''' is a [[heritage railway]] in [[Maharashtra]], [[India]]. It was built between 1901 and 1907 by [[Abdul Hussein Adamjee Peerbhoy]], financed by his father Sir [[Adamjee Peerbhoy]] at the cost of Rs.16,00,000.<ref>[[:Image:Matheran_Railway_Wala.jpg]]</ref>The railway covers a distance of 20&nbsp;[[kilometres]] (12.67&nbsp;[[mile]]s), over large swathes of forest territory connecting [[Neral, India|Neral]] to [[Matheran]] in the [[Western Ghats]] hills  near [[Karjat]] and [[Mumbai]].
+
'''Matheran Hill Railway,''' a [[heritage railway]] in [[Maharashtra]], [[India]], had been built between 1901 and 1907 by [[Abdul Hussein Adamjee Peerbhoy]], financed by his father Sir [[Adamjee Peerbhoy]] at the cost of Rs.16,00,000. The railway covers a distance of 20&nbsp;[[kilometres]] (12.67&nbsp;[[mile]]s), over large swathes of forest territory connecting [[Neral, India|Neral]] to [[Matheran]] in the [[Western Ghats]] hills  near [[Karjat]] and [[Mumbai]].
  
The railway is a {{2ft}} [[narrow gauge railway]]. Neral also has a broad gauge station which is on the busy Mumbai-[[Pune]] route.
+
The railway, part of the [[Central Railways]], uses a {{2ft}} [[narrow gauge railway]]; Neral also has a broad gauge station on the busy Mumbai-[[Pune]] route. UNESCO currently has Matheran Hill Railway under consideration as a [[World Heritage Site]].
  
The railways comes under the [[Central Railways]] and is being promoted as a future [[World Heritage Site]].
+
Closed by flood damage during 2005, the Railroad had been schedule to re-opened April 2007.<ref>Express India, [http://cities.expressindia.com/fullstory.php?newsid=173751 Why you still can’t take the toy train to Matheran.] Retrieved January 8, 2009.</ref> Contrary to those expectations, the first run on the repaired railway occured on March 5, 2007.<ref>DNA India, [http://dnaindia.com/report.asp?NewsID=1083184 Uphill Journey Resumes.] Retrieved January 8, 2009.</ref>
 
 
The railway was closed by flood damage during 2005 and was not expected to re-open before April 2007.<ref>[http://cities.expressindia.com/fullstory.php?newsid=173751 Why you still can’t take the toy train to Matheran]</ref>Contrary to those expectations, the first run on the repaired railway was on 5 March 2007.<ref>[http://dnaindia.com/report.asp?NewsID=1083184 Uphill Journey Resumes]</ref>
 
  
 
===Locomotives===
 
===Locomotives===
 
 
====Steam locomotives====
 
====Steam locomotives====
 
 
{|class="wikitable"
 
{|class="wikitable"
 
!MHR No.
 
!MHR No.
Line 466: Line 282:
 
|}
 
|}
  
[[Darjeeling Himalayan Railway]] No. 794 was transferred here in 2001
+
[[Darjeeling Himalayan Railway]] No. 794 transferred to Matheran Hill Railway in 2001
  
 
====Diesel locomotives====
 
====Diesel locomotives====
 
 
{|class="wikitable"
 
{|class="wikitable"
 
!ISR No.
 
!ISR No.
Line 544: Line 359:
 
|}
 
|}
  
Currently Class NDM1 and NDM6 locomotives are in use.
+
Currently Class NDM1 and NDM6 locomotives serve the route.
  
===See also===
+
==See also==
  
 
*[[Matheran]]
 
*[[Matheran]]
*[[Darjeeling Himalayan Railway]]
+
*[[Ootacamund]]
*[[Nilgiri Mountain Railway]]
+
*[[Indian Railways]]
  
 
== Notes ==
 
== Notes ==
{{reflist}}
+
<references/>
  
===History of Darjeeling Himalayan Railway Notes===
+
== References ==
{{reflist}}
+
* Aitken, Bill. ''Exploring Indian Railways.'' Oxford India paperbacks. Delhi: Oxford University Press, 1994. ISBN 9780195631098.
 +
* Bhandari, R. R. ''Exotic Indian Mountain Railways.'' New Delhi: Ministry of Railways, 1984. OCLC: 17776105.
 +
* Bhandari, R. R. ''Indian Railways Glorious 150 Years.'' New Delhi: Publications Division, Ministry of Information & Broadcasting, Govt. of India, 2005. ISBN 9788123012544.
 +
* Ghosh, Sitansu Sekhar. ''Railways in India—a Legend Origin & Development (1830-1980).'' Kolkata: Jogemaya Prokashani, 2006. ISBN 9788188374182.
 +
* Hughes, H. ''Indian Locomotives Part 3, Narrow Gauge, 1863-1940.'' The Continental Railway Circle, 1994. ISBN 0952165503.
 +
* Martin, Terry. ''The Iron Sherpa The Story of the Darjeeling Himalayan Railway, 1879-2006.'' Chester: RailRomances, 2006. ISBN 9781900622103.
 +
* Sahni, Jogendra Nath. ''Indian Railways; One Hundred Years, 1853 to 1953.'' New Delhi: Ministry of Railways (Railway Board), 1953. OCLC: 3153177.
 +
* Srinivasan, Roopa, Manish Tiwari, and Sandeep Silas. ''Our Indian Railway Themes in India's Railway History.'' New Delhi: Foundation Books, 2006. ISBN 9788175963306.
  
===Darjeeling Himalayan Railway Notes===
+
==External links==
{{reflist}}
+
All links retrieved November 10, 2022.
 +
* [http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/944 UNESCO World Heritage Site: Mountain Railways of India].
  
====DHR External links===
 
* [http://www.acrossthedivide.com/wilkpedia/sikkim.htm Pictures of Darjeeling and the Toy Train]
 
*See the panography at http://www.world-heritage-tour.org/asia/in/darjeeling/ghumStation.html
 
*http://www.dhr.in/
 
*http://www.indianrail.gov.in/dm_hill.html
 
*A kit to build a 'B' Class Locomotive in 4mm scale can be obtained from http://www.backwoodsminiatures.com/
 
*Kits to build the coaches of the DHR can be obtained from [[Worsley Works]] Web Site  http://worsleyworks.co.uk
 
* International Working Steam  [http://www.steam.dial.pipex.com/internat.htm]
 
 
===External links===
 
 
* [http://trainweb.org/railworld/MLR2/ Railworld] - Photographs
 
* [http://blog.russnelson.com/railroads/neral-matheran-light-railway.html Neral Matheran Light Railway] - Photographs of 2005 monsoon damage
 
* [http://spaces.msn.com/curumseydamjeearogyabhuv/ Matheran]
 
* International Working Steam  [http://www.steam.dial.pipex.com/internat.htm]
 
 
<!--{{credits|Matheran_Hill_Railway|137862936}}—>
 
 
==External links==
 
* UNESCO World Heritage Site, [http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/944 Mountain Railways of India].  Retrieved 26 October 2006.
 
* International Working Steam  [http://www.steam.dial.pipex.com/internat.htm]
 
{{World Heritage Sites in India}}
 
  
{{credits|Mountain_Railways_of_India|135016289|History_of_Darjeeling_Himalayan_Railway|165598918|Matheran_Hill_Railway|137862936|}}
+
[[Category:History]]
 +
[[Category:Industry and business]]
 +
{{credits|Mountain_Railways_of_India|135016289|History_of_Darjeeling_Himalayan_Railway|165598918|Nilgiri_Mountain_Railway|162040213|Kalka-Shimla_Railway|168977790|Matheran_Hill_Railway|137862936|}}

Latest revision as of 17:47, 10 November 2022

Mountain Railways of India*
UNESCO World Heritage Site

The Darjeeling Toy Train.
State Party Flag of India India
Type Cultural
Criteria ii, iv
Reference 944
Region** Asia-Pacific
Inscription history
Inscription 1999  (23rd Session)
Extensions 2005
* Name as inscribed on World Heritage List.
** Region as classified by UNESCO.

Several railways had been built in the mountainous regions of India. Collectively they have been called the Mountain railways of India. Four of those railways continue to run in 2007:

  • Darjeeling Himalayan Railway
  • Nilgiri Mountain Railway
  • Kalka-Shimla Railway
  • Matheran Hill Railway

The collective designation refers to the current project by the Indian government to nominate a representative example of its historic railways to UNESCO as a World Heritage Site. The Darjeeling Himalayan Railway had been recognized in 1999, while UNESCO added the Nilgiri Mountain Railway as an extension to the site in 2005. They won recognition for being outstanding examples of bold, ingenious engineering solutions for the problem of establishing an effective rail link through a rugged, mountainous terrain.

Both the Kalka-Shimla Railway and the Matheran Hill Railway made the tentative nomination list for that site.

Darjeeling Himalayan Railway

History

The Darjeeling Himalayan Railway, nicknamed the "Toy Train," maintains a 2 ft 0 in (610 mm) gauge narrow-gauge railway from Siliguri to Darjeeling in West Bengal, run by the Indian Railways.

The "Toy Train" approaching Darjeeling.

A standard gauge railway connected Calcutta (now Kolkata) and Siliguri in 1878.[1] Siliguri, located at the base of the Himalayas, was connected to Darjeeling by a cart road (the present day Hill Cart Road) on which tonga services were available.[2] Franklin Prestage, an agent of Eastern Bengal Railway Company approached the government with a proposal of laying a steam tramway from Siliguri to Darjeeling.[2] Sir Ashley Eden, the Lieutenant Governor of Bengal, formed a committee to assess the feasibility of the project. The government accepted the proposal in 1879 following the positive report of the committee.[2] Construction started the same year.

Gillander Arbuthnot & Company received the responsibility of construction. By March 1880, the line extended to Tindharia. Lord Lytton, the first Viceroy to visit Darjeeling rode in the train up to Tindharia.[2] The stretch from Siliguri to Kurseong opened on August 23, 1880. The Siliguri to Darjeeling track inaugurated on July 4, 1881.[1] The name of the rail company promptly changed to the Darjeeling Himalayan Railway Company. Initially the alignment of the railroad followed Hill Cart Road. It became apparent that in some areas the steepness of the road proved too difficult for the locomotives to maneuver easily. In 1882, the company constructed four loops and four reverses (zig-zags) between Sukna and Gayabari to ease the gradient.[3]

Darjeeling Himalayan Railway, in 1921

In 1886, the line extended a quarter of mile to Darjeeling Bazar.[1] The Darjeeling station underwent renovation in 1891 while Kurseong got a new station building and storage shed in 1896.[3] Darjeeling Himalayan Railway (DHR) suffered from an earthquake in 1897 and a major cyclone in 1899.[3] By 1909–1910, DHR carried 174,000 passengers and 47,000 tons of goods annually.[3] The first bogie carriages entered service, replacing the extremely basic four wheel carriages. DHR extension lines underwent construction to Kishanganj in 1914, and Gielkhola in 1915.[1] At Tindharia the railway works relocated from behind the loco shed to a new and extensive site.[3]

The Batasia loop, constructed in 1919, eliminated problems by creating easier gradients on the ascent from Darjeeling.[3] DHR started to face competition from bus services that started operating in the Hill Cart Road, and took less time than the railway to reach Darjeeling. In 1934, a major earthquake in Bihar shook all of Northeast India. Many buildings in Darjeeling suffered heavy damage, the railway also badly damaged, although it soon recovered and played a vital role in transporting repair materials.[3] During World War II, DHR played a vital role transporting military personnel and supplies to the numerous camps around Ghum and Darjeeling.[3]

The Darjeeling Himalayan Railway, now.

After the Independence of India, the Indian Government purchased DHR, absorbing it into the Indian Government Railways organization.[3] DHR came under the management of the Assam Railways organisation. In 1952, Assam Railway, including DHR, became part of the North Eastern Railway Zone[3] and later in 1958, a part of the Northeast Frontier Railway Zone of Indian Railway.[3] In 1962, the tracks realigned at Siliguri, extending the line by nearly 4 miles (6 km) to New Jalpaiguri (NJP) to meet the new broad gauge line there.[3] It opened for freight that year and for passengers in 1964. The loco shed and carriage depot at Siliguri Junction relocated to NJP.

DHR remained closed for 18 months during the hostile period of Gorkhaland Movement in 1988–1989.[3] UNESCO declared DHR a World Heritage Site in 1999, becoming only the second railway in the world to have this honor bestowed upon it,[4] the first one being Semmering Railway of Austria in 1998.

A description from 1920s

The Darjeeling Himalayan Railway has long been viewed with affection and enthusiasm by travellers to the region, and the Earl of Ronaldshay gave the following description of a journey in the early 1920s:

Siliguri is palpably a place of meeting. […] The discovery that here the metre gauge system ends and the two foot gauge of the Darjeeling-Himalayan railway begins, confirms what all these things hint at. […] One steps into a railway carriage which might easily be mistaken for a toy, and the whimsical idea seizes hold of one that one has accidentally stumbled into Lilliput. With a noisy fuss out of all proportion to its size the engine gives a jerk—and starts. […] No special mechanical device such as a rack is employed - unless, indeed, one can so describe the squat and stolid hill-man who sits perched over the forward buffers of the engine and scatters sand on the rails when the wheels of the engine lose their grip of the metals and race, with the noise of a giant spring running down when the control has been removed. Sometimes we cross our own track after completing the circuit of a cone, at others we zigzag backwards and forwards; but always we climb at a steady gradient—so steady that if one embarks in a trolley at Ghum, the highest point on the line, the initial push supplies all the energy necessary to carry one to the bottom.[5]


The Darjeeling Himalayan Railway Route

Darjeeling Himalayan Railway panorama.jpg
A tight loop (Agony Point) on the Darjeeling Himalayan Railway.
Toy Train approaching Darjeeling, taking water.
  • New Jalpaiguri: The railway extended to the south in 1964 to meet the new Broad gauge to Assam. Where the two met, New Jalpaiguri came into existence.
  • Siliguri Town: Original southern terminus of the line.
  • Siliguri Junction: Became a major station only when a new metre-gauge line had been built to Assam in the early 1950s.
  • Sukna: This station marks the change in the landscape from the flat plains to the wooded lower slopes of the mountains. The gradient of the railway changes dramatically.

Loop No. 1 lay in the woods above Sukna. Removed after flood damage in 1991, the site has been lost in the forest.

  • Rangtong: A short distance above Rangtong sits a water tank. That proved a better position for the tank than in the station, both in terms of water supply and distance between other water tanks.

When the company removed Loop 2 in 1942 following flood damage, they added a new reverse, No.1, creating the longest reverse run.

Loop No. 3 sits at Chunbatti. That now constitutes the lowest loop.

Reverses No. 2 & 3 lay between Chunbatti and Tindharia.
  • Tindharia: A major station on the line as below the station sits the workshops; also an office for the engineers and a large locomotive shed, all on a separate site.
Immediately above the station sit three sidings, used to inspect the carriage while the locomotive changed, before the train continued towards Darjeeling.

Loop No. 4 has been named Agony Point, deriving from the shape of the loop coming to an apex, the tightest curve on the line.

  • Gayabari
Reverse No. 6 constitutes the last reverse on the climb.
  • Mahanadi
  • Kurseong: A shed stands here and a few sidings adjacent to the main line, but the station proper serves as a dead end. Up trains must reverse out of the station (across a busy road junction) before they can continue on their climb. The station had been built that way so that the train could enter a secure yard and stay there while the passengers left the train for refreshments.
Above Kurseong station, the railway runs through the bazaar. Trains skirt the front of shops and market stalls on this busy stretch of road.
  • Tung
  • Dilaram
  • Sonada
  • Rangbul
  • Jor Bungalow
  • Ghum—Summit of the line and highest station in India. Now includes a museum on the first floor of the station building with larger exhibits in the old goods yard.
Batasia Loop
  • Darjeeling: The furthest reach of the line went to Darjeeling Bazaar, a goods-only line and now lost under the road surface and small buildings.

Locomotives

No.787 after conversion to oil firing.
No.778 hauling a train on the Ffestiniog Railway.

All the steam locomotives currently in use on the railway have the "B" Class rating, a design built between 1889 and 1925. A total of thirty four had been built; by 2005 only twelve remained on the railway and in use (or under repair).

No. 787 has been rebuilt with oil firing, originally installed to work on the same principle as that used on Nilgiri Mountain Railway No.37395. To operate the oil burner and an electrically driven feed pump, mechanics fitted a diesel-powered generator; a diesel-powered compressor fitted and to power the braking system. Additionally the locomotive had been fitted with a feed water heater. The overall result proved a dramatic change in the appearance of the locomotive.

In March 2001, the company transferred No. 794 to the Matheran Hill Railway to allow a "Joy Train" (Steam-hauled tourist train) to be operated on that railway. The train entered service there until May 2002. Only one DHR steam locomotive has been taken out of India, No. 778 (originally No. 19). After many years out of use in an American museum, an enthusiast in the UK bought the train, restoring to working order. Now based on a private railway in Oxfordshire, the traqin has run on the Ffestiniog Railway.

Two diesel locomotives, Nos. 604 & 605, both belong to the NDM6 class. Both had been originally intended for use on the Matheran Hill Railway, identical to the four locomotives actually delivered there. In 1910 the railway purchased the third Garratt locomotive built, a D class 0-4-0+0-4-0.

In popular culture

The Darjeeling Himalayan Railway has long been viewed with affection and enthusiasm by travellers to the region, and the Earl of Ronaldshay gave the following description of a journey in the early 1920s:

Inside of the toy train

Siliguri is palpably a place of meeting. […] The discovery that here the metre gauge system ends and the two foot gauge of the Darjeeling-Himalayan railway begins, confirms what all these things hint at. […] One steps into a railway carriage which might easily be mistaken for a toy, and the whimsical idea seizes hold of one that one has accidentally stumbled into Lilliput. With a noisy fuss out of all proportion to its size the engine gives a jerk—and starts. […] No special mechanical device such as a rack is employed—unless, indeed, one can so describe the squat and stolid hill-man who sits perched over the forward buffers of the engine and scatters sand on the rails when the wheels of the engine lose their grip of the metals and race, with the noise of a giant spring running down when the control has been removed. Sometimes we cross our own track after completing the circuit of a cone, at others we zigzag backwards and forwards; but always we climb at a steady gradient—so steady that if one embarks in a trolley at Ghum, the highest point on the line, the initial push supplies all the energy necessary to carry one to the bottom."[6]

The trip up to Darjeeling on railway has changed little since that time, and continues to delight travellers and rail enthusiasts, so much so that it has its own preservation and support group, the Darjeeling Himalayan Railway Society.[7]

Several Bollywood movies have portrayed the railway. The song Mere sapno ki rani from the film Aradhana where the protagonist Rajesh Khanna tries to woo heroine Sharmila Tagore who rode in the train proved especially popular.[8][9] Other notable films include Jhumroo, Parineeta, and Raju Ban Gaya Gentleman. Director Wes Anderson directed a film called The Darjeeling Limited.[10] The movie will follow three brothers, (Owen Wilson, Adrien Brody, and Jason Schwartzman), as they travel throughout India on the railway.

Nilgiri Mountain Railway

The Nilgiri Mountain Railway (NMR) connects the town of Mettupalayam with the hill station of Udagamandalam, in the Nilgiri Hills of southern India, both in the state of Tamil Nadu. The only rack railway in India, the NMR uses the Abt system.

History

Plaque commemorating NMR as World Heritage Site at Coonoor railway station

The Nilgiri Mountain railway stands as one of the oldest mountain railways in India. Under consideration since 1845, the British finally opened the line in 1899. Initially operated by the Madras Railway Company, the railway numbers among a hand full in the world that depends on steam locomotives.

The Palghat division of the Indian Railways, which operates the NMR, incurs an annual shortfall of Rs 4 crores, (~1 million USD). During the Centenary celebrations of Nilgiri Mountain Railway in 1999 Railway Minister Nitish Kumar announced that the line would soon be electrified. In July 2005, UNESCO added the NMR as an extension to the World Heritage Site of Darjeeling Himalayan Railway[11] after it satisfied the necessary criteria, thus forcing abandonment of modernization plans.

Operation

functioning of the rack and pinion.

The NMR track uses 1,000 mm (3 ft 3⅜ in) gauge, isolated from other narrow gauge lines. Below Coonoor the line uses the rack and pinion system to climb the steep gradient. Steam rack locomotives operate on the rack section trains manufactured by the Swiss Locomotive and Machine Works of Winterthur in Switzerland, always marshaled at the downhill (Mettupalayam) end of the train. The average gradient in that rack section measures 1 in 24.5, with a maximum of 1 in 12.

As of 2007, one train a day passes over the rack section, starting from Mettupalayam at 7.10 a.m. reaching Ooty at noon. Return train starts from Mettupalayam at 3 p.m. and reaching Ooty at 6:35 p.m. The train has a scheduled trip both ways connecting it to the Nilgiri Express (Mettupplalayam-Chennai) with the following time schedule:

Arrival (from Chennai): 5:30 a.m. approx
Departure (to Chennai): 7:30 p.m.

The railway recommends booking tickets for NMR in advance especially during peak season. Ticket booking, similar to other conventional trains, may be done via official website also.

Station code : UAM
Official name of the train: Udagamandalam-Mettupalayam Passenger
Fare - 1st class : Rs. 135
2nd class : Rs. 25

A typical Nilgiri train on the rack section.

Between Coonoor and Udagamandalam the train is operated by a YDM4 diesel locomotive using conventional rail adhesion principles. On this section the locomotive is always at the Coonoor end of the train as although the line is not steep enough to need a rack rail the ruling gradient out of Coonoor is still very steep at 1 in 25.

Between Coonoor and Udagamandalam (in 2005) there are four daily trains each way.

The diesel locomotives can only operate on the upper section. The steam locomotives can be used either with or without the rack section when required.

The majority of repairs to the locomotives are carried out at Coonoor shed but many of the steam locomotives have been rebuilt at the Golden Rock Workshops. Carriages are repaired at Mettupalayam but, like the locomotives, are taken to one of the big railway workshops for major work.

The Route

A excited crowd receives the Nilgiri Mountain Train at the Ooty station.

The train covers a distance of 46 km (28 miles), travels through 208 curves, 16 tunnels, and 250 bridges. The uphill journey takes around 290 minutes and the downhill journey 215 minutes.

  • Mettupalayam: 1069 ft above sea level; Junction with the Broad Gauge line from Coimbatore. Passengers cross the platform to the Nilgiri train. A small locomotive shed, and the carriage workshops for the line, operate here.
Leaving Mettupalayum, the line, adhesion worked, actually drops for a short distance before crossing a wide river called Bhavaani and starting to climb gently.
  • Kallar: 8 km, 1260 ft; Closed as a passenger station, the rack rail begins here. As the train leaves the station, the gradient measures 1 in 12.
  • Adderly: 13 km, 2390 ft; Closed as a passenger station but still used as a water stop.
  • Hillgrove: 18 km, 3580 ft; Block post and water stop as well as having refreshments for passengers.
  • Runneymede: 21 km, 4612 ft; Closed as a passenger station but still used as a water stop.
A typical Nilgiri train leaving Hillgrove Station.
  • Kateri Road: 25 km, 5070 ft; Closed as a passenger station. trains never stop here.
  • Coonoor: 28 km, 5616 ft; main intermediate station on the line at site of the locomotive workshops as well as the top end of the rack rail. Trains must reverse a short distance before continuing their climb to Ooty. Normally the locomotive changes here with diesel traction being normal for all trains to Ooty.
  • Wellington: 29 km, 5804 ft
  • Aruvankadu: 32 km, 6144 ft
  • Ketti: 38 km, 6864 ft
  • Lovedale: 42 km, 7694 ft
From a short distance before Lovedale the line descends all the way into Ooty.
  • Ooty: 46 km, 7228 ft (2200 m).

Gallery

Kalka-Shimla Railway

Shivalik Deluxe Express in Taradevi Station

The Kalka-Shimla Railway, a 2 ft 6 in (762 mm) narrow gauge railway in North-West India, travels along a mostly mountainous route from Kalka to Shimla. Known for breathtaking views of the hills and surrounding vilages, the KSR haves the greatest incline over its 96 km stretch. The British discovered Shimla shortly after the first Anglo-Gurkha war. By the 1830s, Shimla had already developed as a major base for the British. It became the Summer Capital of British India in 1864.

Construction and initial operation

Bhalkoo, the "illiterate genius" had played a vital role in the construction of the Kalka-Shimla rail line. In 1898, the Delhi-Umbala Company won the contract for construction of the railroad at an estimated cost of Rs 86,78,500. The cost doubled during execution of the project, finally purchased by the state in 1906 for Rs 1,71,07,748. The 96.54 km (60 mi) line opened for traffic November 9, 1903. Because of the high capital and maintenance cost, coupled with peculiar working conditions, the government allowed the Kalka-Shimla Railway allowed to charge fares higher than the prevailing tariffs on other lines. Even that failed to sustain the company, the government stepping in to purchase it on January 1, 1906.

Twenty-first century

Shivalik Express halts at the Solan Station

For about a week starting on September 11, 2007, an expert team from UNESCO visited the railway to review and inspect the railway for possible selection as a World Heritage Site. After the team submits its report, the status of the railway's selection would likely be made in July 2008. If wining the selection, the railway would become the fourth rail property in India for UNESCO World Heritage Site designation.[12] In mid-August 2007, the government of Himachal Pradesh declared the railway a heritage property in preparation for its review in September.[13]

Route

The government built the Kalka-Shimla Railway to connect Shimla, the summer capital of India during the British Raj, with the Indian rail system. Now, Shimla serves as the capital city of Himachal Pradesh, while the town of Kalka lay within the Panchkula district of Haryana. Spectacular scenery along the whole route, and the marvels of its construction, keeps the traveler on the line spell bound. On leaving Kalka, 656 meters (2,152.2 ft) above sea level, the railway enters the foothills and immediately commences its climb.

The route offers a panoramic feast of the picturesque Himalayas from the shivalik foot hills at Kalka to several important points such as Dharampur, Solan, Kandaghat, Taradevi, Barog, Salogra, Summerhill and Shimla at an altitude of 2,076 meters (6,811 ft).

Engineering

A typical passenger train on one of the line's big bridges.

The Kalka Shimla Railway runs through 103 tunnels (one out-of-service; so only 102 in service). The longest tunnel exists at Barog, named after the engineer in charge of construction. Mr Barog apparently committed suicide after making a mistake in laying the alignment. That tunnel measures 1,143.61 meters (3,752 ft), remaining for a long time the second longest tunnel on the Indian Railways. A straight tunnel, it passes through fissured sandstone.

The line has 864 bridges, one an 18.29 meter (60 ft) plate girder span and steel truss. The others have been constructed as viaducts with multi-arched galleries like the ancient Roman aqueducts. Bridge No. 493, historically known as the "Arch Gallery," situated between Kandaghat and Kanoh stations, has been constructed as an arch bridge in three stages, using stone masonry. Bridge No. 226; between Sonwara and Dharampur, an arch gallery bridge having five tier galleries of multiple spans, has been constructed with stone masonry and bridging a deep valley surrounded by high peaks.

The railway has a ruling gradient of 1 in 25 or 4 percent. It has 919 curves, the sharpest being 48 degrees (a radius of 37.47 m or 122.93 feet). Climbing from 656 meters (2,152.2 ft), the line terminates at an elevation of 2,076 meters (6,811 ft) at Shimla.

Locomotives

Kalka Railway Station

The first locomotives to arrive were two class "B" 0-4-0ST from the famous Darjeeling Himalayan Railway. These were built as 2 ft 0 in (610 mm) gauge engines, but were converted to 2 ft 6 in (762 mm) gauge in 1901. They were not large enough for the job, and were sold on in 1908. They were followed by 10 engines with a 0-4-2T wheel arrangement of a slightly larger design, introduced in 1902. These locos weighed 21.5 tons (21.85 tonnes), and had 30" (762 mm) driving wheels, and 12" x 16" (304.8 mm x 406.4 mm) cylinders. They were later classified into the "B" class by the North Western State Railways. All these locos were constructed by the British firm of Sharp Stewart.

Larger locomotives were introduced in the form of an 2-6-2T, of which 30 were built with slight variations between 1904 and 1910. Built by the Hunslet and the North British Locomotive Company, these locomotives were about 35 tons (35.56 metric tons), with 30" (762 mm) drivers and 14" x 16" (355.6 mm x 406.4 mm) cylinders. These locomotives, later classed K and K2 by the North Western State Railways, subsequently handled the bulk of the railways traffic during the steam era. A pair of Kitson-Meyer 2-6-2+2-6-2 articulated locomotives, classed TD, were supplied in 1928. They quickly fell into disfavor, as it often took all day for enough freight to be assembled to justify operating a goods train hauled by one of these locos. Shippers looking for a faster service started to turn to road transport. These 68 ton (69.09 metric tons) locomotives were soon transferred to the Kangra Valley Railway, and subsequently ended up converted to 1,000 mm (3 ft 3⅜ in) gauge in Pakistan.

Trains

  • Shivalik Deluxe Express
  • Himalayan Queen
  • Rail Car
  • Other Local trains

Railcars

Rail cars, which looked like buses on the rail, were used to transport upper class travellers. The fare for these cars was almost double of the first class ticket. The travel time by these rail cars was less than three hours from Kalka to Simla where as trains used to take between Six to Seven hours to complete this journey.

Gallery

Matheran Hill Railway

Matheran Railway No.740 preserved in the UK.

Matheran Hill Railway, a heritage railway in Maharashtra, India, had been built between 1901 and 1907 by Abdul Hussein Adamjee Peerbhoy, financed by his father Sir Adamjee Peerbhoy at the cost of Rs.16,00,000. The railway covers a distance of 20 kilometres (12.67 miles), over large swathes of forest territory connecting Neral to Matheran in the Western Ghats hills near Karjat and Mumbai.

The railway, part of the Central Railways, uses a 2 ft 0 in (610 mm) narrow gauge railway; Neral also has a broad gauge station on the busy Mumbai-Pune route. UNESCO currently has Matheran Hill Railway under consideration as a World Heritage Site.

Closed by flood damage during 2005, the Railroad had been schedule to re-opened April 2007.[14] Contrary to those expectations, the first run on the repaired railway occured on March 5, 2007.[15]

Locomotives

Steam locomotives

MHR No. ISR No. Builder Builders No. Date Current Location
1 738 O & K 1766 1905 Bombay
2 739 O & K 2342 1907 Delhi
3 740 O & K 2343 1907 U.K. (LBR)
4 741 O & K 1767 1905 Matheran

Darjeeling Himalayan Railway No. 794 transferred to Matheran Hill Railway in 2001

Diesel locomotives

ISR No. Class Builder Builders No. Date Current Status Notes
500 NDM1 Jung 12108 1956 Not Known From Kalka Shimla Railway
501 NDM1 Jung 12109 1956 In Service Originally No.750
502 NDM1 Jung 12110 1956 Not Known Originally No.751
503 NDM1 Jung 12111 1956 Dismantled Originally No.752
504 NDM1 Jung 12105 1956 Not Known From Kalka Shimla Railway
505 NDM1 Jung 12107 1956 Dismantled From Kalka Shimla Railway
505 NDM1 Jung 12107 1956 Not Known From Kalka Shimla Railway
600 NDM6 ? ? ? In Service visible in Railworld photos

Currently Class NDM1 and NDM6 locomotives serve the route.

See also

Notes

  1. 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 Darjeeling Himalayan Railway, DHR and Its Development. Retrieved January 8, 2009.
  2. 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 Darjeerling News, DHR History. Retrieved February 24, 2007.
  3. 3.00 3.01 3.02 3.03 3.04 3.05 3.06 3.07 3.08 3.09 3.10 3.11 3.12 Paul Whittle, A Brief History of the DHR, Darjeeling Himalayan Railway Society. Retrieved February 24, 2007.
  4. UNESCO World Heritage Centre, Mountain Railways of India. Retrieved January 8, 2009.
  5. The Earl of Ronaldshay Lands of the Thunderbolt: Sikhim, Chumbi and Bhutan (London: Constable & Company, 1923), 10-12.
  6. The Earl of Ronaldshay, Lands of the Thunderbolt. Sikhim, Chumbi and Bhutan (London: Constable & Company, 1923), 10-12.
  7. DHRS, Welcome to the DHRS. Retrieved May 9, 2007.
  8. Sudha Mahalingam, Darjeeling: Where the journey is the destination. Retrieved May 9, 2007.
  9. Theme India, Darjeeling Toy Train. Retrieved May 9, 2007.
  10. Internet Movie Database, The Darjeeling Limited. Retrieved May 9, 2007.
  11. UNESCO, NMR added as a World Heritage Site. Retrieved January 8, 2009.
  12. Hindustan Times, Toy train set to enter UNESCO heritage list. Retrieved August 9, 2007.
  13. The Hindu, title=HP declares Kalka-Shimla railway as "heritage" property. Retrieved August
  14. Express India, Why you still can’t take the toy train to Matheran. Retrieved January 8, 2009.
  15. DNA India, Uphill Journey Resumes. Retrieved January 8, 2009.

References
ISBN links support NWE through referral fees

  • Aitken, Bill. Exploring Indian Railways. Oxford India paperbacks. Delhi: Oxford University Press, 1994. ISBN 9780195631098.
  • Bhandari, R. R. Exotic Indian Mountain Railways. New Delhi: Ministry of Railways, 1984. OCLC: 17776105.
  • Bhandari, R. R. Indian Railways Glorious 150 Years. New Delhi: Publications Division, Ministry of Information & Broadcasting, Govt. of India, 2005. ISBN 9788123012544.
  • Ghosh, Sitansu Sekhar. Railways in India—a Legend Origin & Development (1830-1980). Kolkata: Jogemaya Prokashani, 2006. ISBN 9788188374182.
  • Hughes, H. Indian Locomotives Part 3, Narrow Gauge, 1863-1940. The Continental Railway Circle, 1994. ISBN 0952165503.
  • Martin, Terry. The Iron Sherpa The Story of the Darjeeling Himalayan Railway, 1879-2006. Chester: RailRomances, 2006. ISBN 9781900622103.
  • Sahni, Jogendra Nath. Indian Railways; One Hundred Years, 1853 to 1953. New Delhi: Ministry of Railways (Railway Board), 1953. OCLC: 3153177.
  • Srinivasan, Roopa, Manish Tiwari, and Sandeep Silas. Our Indian Railway Themes in India's Railway History. New Delhi: Foundation Books, 2006. ISBN 9788175963306.

External links

All links retrieved November 10, 2022.

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