WORLD HERITAGE STATUS FOR THE D.H.R.

Introduction

 The Darjeeling Himalayan Railway (DHR) is one of only three railways in the world to be granted World Heritage status by the United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO). It gained this coveted status at the 23rd Session of UNESCO's World Heritage Committee on 2 December 1999. This short article covers;

Criteria for World Heritage status
Achieving World Heritage status for the DHR
What is Protected?
The Practical Implications of World Heritage status
The Future
Other World Heritage Railways

Criteria for World Heritage status

UNESCO uses several criteria to establish a site's eligibility for World Heritage status. In the case of the DHR two were relevant, and in its justification for approval UNESCO stated:

"Criterion (ii) The Darjeeling Himalayan Railway is an outstanding example of the influence of an innovative transportation system on the social and economic development of a multi-cultural region, which was to serve as a model for similar developments in many parts of the world."

"Criterion (iv): The development of railways in the 19th century had a profound influence on social and economic developments in many parts of the world. This process is illustrated in an exceptional and seminal fashion by the Darjeeling Himalayan Railway."

The brief description of the DHR in the Report of the 23rd Session of the UNESCO World Heritage Committee states:

"The Darjeeling Himalayan Railway is the first, and still the most outstanding example of a hill passenger railway. Opened in 1881, it applied bold and ingenious engineering solutions to the problems of establishing an effective rail link across a mountainous terrain of great beauty. It is still fully operational and retains most of its original features intact."

Achieving World Heritage status for the DHR

Application for World Heritage status can be made only by the State Party under whose jurisdiction the site is located, and involves the preparation of a very detailed document to rigorous requirements laid down by UNESCO. Indian Railways, on behalf of the Government of India, prepared an application for the DHR's inclusion on the World Heritage List, and submitted it to UNESCO in June 1998. UNESCO's regulations state that applications "received by 1 October of a given year will be considered during the following year". The procedure then includes an inspection of the site by an "appropriate non-governmental organisation". In the case of the DHR, Dr. Robert Lee, consultant to UNESCO's International Council On Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS), visited the railway in February 1999. Dr. Lee's report was considered by UNESCO and further information collected from the Government of India. The World Heritage Committee meets once a year, and at its meeting in Morocco at the end of November 1999, the D.H.R. was accorded World Heritage site status.

What is Protected?

The World Heritage Convention was established in 1972. Its focus was the protection and preservation of geographical sites of exceptional beauty and fragility, and old and valued buildings. The criteria for World Heritage status therefore concentrates on evaluating the fixed assets of a site. The wording of the convention is such that it protects the structure in the location where it was built, and thus prevents any removal of it. Thus it is the fixed assets of the DHR. (i.e. the permanent way and buildings) that have World Heritage status and not the moveable assets such as the locomotives and rolling stock.

The notion of a railway or any other kind of industrial site being awarded World Heritage status is relatively new. To some extent there is a mismatch between the nature of industrial sites in general (and railways in particular) and the wording of the 1972 Convention. UNESCO is aware of this, and it is to be hoped that the Convention will be amended to safeguard every aspect of a site with World Heritage status.

The Practical Implications of World Heritage status

As the DHR has World Heritage status, the Government of India is obliged to care for the railway and to give a conservation report to UNESCO every five years. The Government of India was also required to prepare a conservation and management plan for the DHR that includes proposals to restore and maintain the buildings and permanent way. There are no direct monetary awards attached to World Heritage status, but there is a World Heritage Fund that will consider applications for modest grants to help with conservation. These grants can be given for such purposes as emergency work, training of local personnel or technical co-operation.

The Future

Clearly this is still much to do to ensure that the DHR retains its special identity as a steam-operated hill railway. This brief explanation of World Heritage status is not the place to go into details. In summary however, we can say that the conservation of the DHR will be of necessity a slow process. As far as the buildings are concerned, there is a lot of research to be done to discover what they originally looked like. Following this, much careful and expert restoration needs to be undertaken, which means that craftsmen capable of this work need to be found or trained. Any work to the permanent way is naturally dependent upon traffic on the Hill Cart Road and can only be carried out in a phased manner. Indian Railways has already done much on relaying the track and renewing bridges.

The 'B'-class locomotives and rolling stock are NOT protected by UNESCO's inscription. However, they are an integral part of the identity of the D.H.R. Their importance was recognised and emphasised by Dr. Lee in his submission to UNESCO. Regardless of possible changes to the operation of the line, the 'B'-class locomotives must therefore continue to be found a place that is financially viable in future plans for the running of the railway.

Other World Heritage Railways

The first railway to be granted World Heritage status (1998) was the 41km standard gauge Semmering Railway in Austria built 1848 - 1851.

The third railway to be granted World Heritage status (17 July 2005) was the 46km metre gauge Nilgiri Mountain Railway in southern India built 1891 - 1899.

Also within India is the Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus (formerly Victoria Terminus), Mumbai (formerly Bombay), with World Heritage status granted on 2 July 2004.