THE TOY TRAIN

"The most enjoyable day I've spent on earth is of mixed ecstacy of deadly fright and unimaginable joy."
Mark Twain (after his ride on the Toy Train in 1895)

Trains came to India in the early part of the last century. Among the very first and the most novel is the famous Darjeeling Toy Train which made its maiden trip in September 1881.
      
It is a pioneering work of achievement projecting not only its engineering ingenuity but it also marks the historic development of 19th century British Health Resort or convalescent centre in the remote North Eastern Himalayas.
In 1870, Franklyn Prestage came up with the brilliant idea - ' The Toy Train'. But it was only eight years later that he submitted the scheme to Lt. Governor Sir Astley Eden, who gave immediate sanction to it. The construction of the railway began under the name of "Darjeeling Tramway Co.", which was renamed the "Darjeeling Himalayan Railway Co." and has ever since retained this name officially.

Near the Batasia loop

The first 20 miles from Siliguri to Tindharia station was inaugurated in March 1880 exclusively for the ' Viceroy Special Train'. It was open to public only after the Railway was connected to Kurseong. The line, then extended to Ghoom, Sonada and on the 4th July 1881, the Baby Locomotive and three coaches puffed right through to Darjeeling.

The train passes through a variation of sheer panoramic beauty as soon as one begins the journey from Siliguri. First it's the dense jungles, and then the tea plantations are seen clinging to the steep terraced mountains. Soon Sukna, the first station exhibits thick foliage of Sal, Toon and teak trees dotted with purple bougainvillea, scarlet poinsettia and exotic mauve of the orchids.

The painstaking ascent of the train starts here. At Chunamandi it comes to its Z crossing and starts the zig-zagging or reversing to attain higher elevation. Tindharia, which has the railway repair workshop is the next station followed by Gayabari, where the train runs on the precipice edge. In a distance is the Pagla Jhora the madly rumbling cascade of waters. Then quickly passing the Gladstone Rock - Kurseong, the town of "White Orchids" jumps into view, then comes Bungalow Bazaar. Soon it reaches Ghoom, the world's highest railroad station. From here, the train starts descending gradually, crossing the evergreen pine forests to reach the graceful double loop at Batasia where a grand view of Darjeeling town presided over by the Mt. Kanchenjunga bursts before our eyes.
This railroad constructed on spurs of the Himalayan Hills and the loops named ' sensation corner ' are very good viewing points. No tunnels were ever dug, so that the travellers got full view of the marvels of the hill topography.

One cannot say which chord of the hill men's heart the wistfully sonorous whistle of this little train strikes, but every hill dweller seems fondly sentimental about their dear baby engine.

The toy train at the station.

The construction of the line is considered a unique engineering feat because of its steep gradient sharp curves, Z-crossings, and loops incorporated in the line. There is an interesting story on how the construction engineer of the project got the idea of the Z crossing. The project suffered hitch once the line reached the Tindharia as the erosion in the hills made it nearly impossible to employ a gradient within the limits of rail transport. The engineer was almost on the verge of abandoning the project when his wife reportedly said " if you cannot go ahead, let's go back ". Back was the catch behind the idea of the Z - crossing where the train is first pushed backwards through an up gradient to reach a considerable height before proceeding ahead and the line takes the shape of the letter 'Z'. There are six such 'Z' reverses along the 87. 48 km journey from New Jalpaiguri to Darjeeling.

The line is laid more or less on the same alignment as the Hill Cart Road, which criss-crosses the line at 177 points. There are three loops in the line, most famous being the Batasia Loop between Ghoom and Darjeeling. Apart from these, the section has 5 major and 498 minor bridges. Ghoom is the highest railway station in the world to reach by a steam locomotive. The project cost was at that time Rs. 52,000.

The Darjeeling Himalayan section has its own workshop at Tindharia where the major overhauling of locomotive carriages and wagons is undertaken, besides manufacturing of spares. The workshop also deals with the costing of ferrous and non-ferrous materials in its own foundry shop and manufacturing of spring and different types in the Blacksmith Shop to meet the requirements of the section. One of the oldest locomotives of this section has been sent to the National Rail Museum, New Delhi.

Losses had started mounting and the service had begun to deteriorate and by the early 90's there was even a talk of closing down the line. That's when Mr. Sherab Thendup stepped in and launched a campaign to save the Toy Train and the campaign has worked. The Indian Railways has abandoned plans to scrape the line and in 1999, UNESCO put it in its list of "World Heritage Sites."
THE BEGINNING OF A NEW SAGA:

The new millennium not only brought good fortunes to many, but it also extended its loving hands to the Darjeeling Himalayan Railways. To make the journey parallel with the modern times, the diesel engine was thus introduced on the last week of June - 2000 and was flagged off by the Railway Minister of India, Ms. Mamta Banerjee in New Jalpaiguri.

Darjeeling Himalayan Railway (DHR) has started a “to - and – fro” Joy Ride between Darjeeling and Ghoom with a fare charge of Rs. 200/- per head. It has a capacity of 30 persons.
Courtesy: Ms. Praneeta Chettri & Ms. Anjana Pradhan