Hill Station Trains
Darjeeling
Train
It was a crisp winter night in the year 1878. A glorious fire crackled on
one side of the hall. The polished parquet floor of the planters club at
Tindharia resonated with choreographed footsteps. The Sahibs (Gentlemen)
and Memsahibs (Ladies) were attired in their best tails, frills and feather
hats. The gaiety of the dancers was infectious. It was party-time.
Kalka
Shimla Train
The idea of a railway line to Shimla dates back to the introduction of railways
in India. In the Delhi gazette, a correspondent in November 1847 sketched
the route of a railway to Shimla with estimates of the traffic returns etc.
in appropriate style. He wrote: We might then see these cooler regions
become the permanent seat of a government daily invigorated by a temperature
adapted to refresh an European constitution and keep the mental powers in
a state of health alike beneficial both to the rulers and the ruled.
Kangra
Valley Train
No one could have thought of making a finer selection of territory for building
a new mountain railway in India than the Kangra valley. Few places can match
this scenic region in the sub-Himalayas. One will stumble across a land
that has cast its magic spell upon those who planned the railway and those
who built the line. The result is there for all to see- an achievement that
in every way makes one proud of the fine record that the history of Indian
railways has always had.
Matheran
Train
Abdul Hussain, son of the business tycoon, Sir Adamjee Peerbhoy of Mumbai,
was a regular visitor to Matheran at the turn of the century. After having
obtained a reluctant consent from his father, young Abdul Hussain camped
at Neral in 1900 AD to plan for a narrow gauge railway line to Matheran.
The construction started in 1904 and the two feet gauge line finally opened
to traffic in 1907.
Nilgiri
Mountain Train
Coonoor is situated 6,000 feet above sea level at the southeast corner of
the Nilgiri plateau and at the head of the principal pass from the plains.
Up this Ghat runs a road 21 miles long and a rack railway 16 ¾ miles
from Mettupalaiyam in Coimbatore district. The place was constituted a municipality
in 1866. Coonoor remained a terminus for the Nilgiri line for eight years.
The extension from Coonoor to Ootacamund was constructed by the Government
of India and the line was opened up to Fernhill on September 15, 1908, and
up to Ootacamund, a month later. Rack system was discarded for this extension
though the ruling gradient is as severe as 1 in 23. The Ooty terminus was
named Udagamandalam, the Tamil word for Ootacamund.
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