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Toy train on Puja track - DHR sets Sept.1 date
The Telegraph, Calcutta; 4 August 2008 by our correspondent
Siliguri, Aug. 3: The Darjeeling Himalayan Railway is set to resume its toy train services from New Jalpaiguri to the hills by September 1, hoping to cash in on the tourist rush during Puja.
The department may also run two trains daily from the plains to the hills and back instead of the usual one to try and make up for the losses suffered in the past few months because of the Gorkha Janmukti Morcha’s bandh and landslips triggered by heavy rain.
“As the festive season approaches, it will now be our priority to attract more tourists and give them uninterrupted services as long as possible,” DHR director Subrata Nath said.
The department is currently busy repairing the track between Rongtong and Tindharia on a war footing and expects the work to be completed by the end of this month.
“We started restoring the 17km stretch of damaged track in the Kurseong subdivision last week and the repairs will be completed in phases over the next few days,” said Nath. “The New Jalpaiguri-Darjeeling service will resume from September 1.”
A stretch of the tracks in Rongtong has been left hanging in the air after rain washed away the soil from underneath, said the DHR director. “Another landslip near a place called 17th Mile has also affected the tracks,” he added.
“We are spending Rs 65 lakh on the repairs,” Nath said.
According to the DHR director, toy train services were totally disrupted for more than one-and-a-half months between April and July.
“No toy trains plied on any of the routes for 15 days in April and 21 days in June. The train services between Siliguri and Darjeeling have been closed over the past two months. Because of these disruptions, the department has lost around Rs 15-20 lakh in earnings this year,” said Nath.
Since July 21, however, the service between Kurseong and Darjeeling has resumed. The joy ride between Ghoom and Darjeeling is also on now, though the evening trips introduced in May have been discontinued.
For Puja, the DHR is planning to make a few changes to its train schedule.
“Usually, we have one pair of trains plying between New Jalpaiguri and Darjeeling, each starting off in the morning and arriving at its destination in the evening. If the number of tourists going to the hills during Puja is high enough, we will have two pairs of train everyday,” said Nath.
The toy train can take around 70 passengers on a single trip.
“Similarly, we have one joy ride a day from Darjeeling to Ghoom and back. We are planning to introduce two trips a day so that more tourists can avail of the service,” the DHR director added.
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Toy train chugs into World’s Top 25
The Telegraph, Calcutta; 15 January 2008 by ANURADHA SHARMA
Siliguri, Jan. 14: The Darjeeling Himalayan Railway (DHR) does not offer a moving palace, nor a five-star hotel on wheels, yet its 125-year-old narrow-gauge train has made it to the recently released list of the World’s Top 25 Trains.
The Society of International Railway Travelers, an organisation that celebrates 25 years in 2008, has made the announcement in a special edition of its official newsletter that provides up-to-date information on rail travel worldwide.
Palace on Wheels and the Deccan Odyssey are the two other Indian trains to feature on the list, which has Europe’s “very dignified grande dame” the Venice Simplon-Orient-Express, and some of the over-the-top luxury trains like the Golden Eagle Trans-Siberian Express and Rovos Rail’s Pride of Africa.
“The World’s Top 25 Trains is based on our own experience and that of our writers, editors, members and staff,” Society president Eleanor Hardy said in an electronic release issued on January 10 from Louisville, Kentucky, US. “The trains met stringent standards for service, accommodation, scenery, itinerary, off-train experiences and passenger enjoyment. Trains cannot pay to be included in this book: we choose them.”
DHR director Subroto Nath said he had spoken to the selectors after he had heard the news. “They confirmed the selection of the DHR,” he said. “What is significant is that the train has been selected solely on the basis of the experience it offers and not because of its heritage status. So far, we have mainly had British enthusiasts who were attracted to the train because of their nostalgia for steam engines. But now we hope to get tourists from all over the world, especially Americans.”
“This is wonderful news,” David Barrie, the president of the London-based DHR Society, told The Telegraph. “We are doubly delighted because it was Darjeeling Tours, an arm of our Society, that organised the tour for the selectors.”
David Charlesworth, the editor of Darjeeling Mail published by the DHR Society, added: “Most railways are about the scenery. The DHR certainly has the variety….It’s main difference is the intimate relationship with people. The travellers feel that they are visiting the homes and meeting everyone who lives along the line. There’s even time to jump on and off the train, travel on the roof and hang out of the doors. This freedom alone puts it at number one in my book!”
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Toy train treat with quiz,
The Telegraph, Calcutta; 25 October 2007 by ANURADHASHARMA
Siliguri, Oct. 24: Schoolchildren in the hills will soon get an opportunity to take free rides on the "sanu rail" (toy train) and learn about its heritage during the journey.
The Darjeeling-Ghum joyrides will be sponsored by the• Darjeeling Himalayan Railway Society, a UK-based body of steam lovers. Two "of its members, retired schoolteacher Marilyn Metz and her conservation-architect husband Peter Tiller, made the announcement during their visit here earlier this month.
"The aim is to take the Darjeeling Himalayan Railway closer to the children and arouse their interest in its unique heritage," Metz said.
To achieve this, the couple have come up with "My Diary of Train Journey", a' fourpage leaflet with 20 questions on the DHR which the children will be asked to fill up on board the toy train.
"Children will find it interesting to answer the questions and in the process end up learning more about the
DHR," said Tiller. "We also plan to get the questions translated into Indian languages."
Some of the questions are easy - what is the colour of the steam locomotive – while others are more difficult which is the highest peak seen from the toy train. The "diary" also has a checklist of buildings and landmarks that the children will tick as the train crosses them. Besides, there is Metz and ,Til.ler. A Telegraph picture
a detailed diagram of a steam engine with the names of all the parts.
The couple had taken a number of children on the Darjeeling-Ghum joyride in the first week of October. However, they will not be here to monitor every trip once the project gets going.
"As local coordinators, Inner Wheel Club, Darjeeling, will organise them and we will sponsor the costs," said Metz.
Nandini Mehtab, president, Inner Wheel Club, Darjeeling, said two trips have been lined up for the near future. "We are
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