Recount #009 : Stay aboard Heritage Tracks Chapter 2

Hello people.......

I am back with my chapter 2...

I am just going to share about another heritage train which will leave you all in awe.

THE MAHARAJA'S EXPRESS which is part of The Indian Panorama Journey.

Maharaja is a Hindi word formed from root words Maha : Great and Rajas : King are Sanskrit words. So, this magnificent Indian Great King vehicle is an epitome that's why it goes with the tagline

Relish Royalty,Spirituality and wilderness.

So what exactly it is offering :

This elegant beauty offers a 8 day trip to rich heritage sites offering a dip in history, culture, cuisines and customs. Though, it offers journey to certain cities that too only in North-central India, yet the experience will leave you mesmerized. And will surely leave you thinking, why didn't I plan for this before !!!!

Well, in some situations its better to be late than never and this exactly is that situation. So, do plan up and visit India and definitely imbibe the experience to your memory like never before.

This elegant ride rolled out in 2010, Maharajas’ Express enlivens the royalty in its coaches, cuisine and comfort of the erstwhile Maharajas'.

Train facilities and offerings:

• A capacity of 88 guests
• 14 guest carriages, divided into 20 Deluxe Cabins, 18 Junior Suites, 4 Suites & 1 Presidential Suite
• Individual climate control in each cabin
• Complimentary Wi-Fi Internet
• Electronic safe & RFID door lock
• Live TV with satellite channels & DVD player in each cabin
• Direct dial phones
• Restaurants 'Mayur Mahal' & 'Rang Mahal', each with a seating capacity of 42 guests
• A well stocked 'Rajah Club', a lounge bar, offering wines & spirits from around the world
• A theme bar 'Safari Bar', equipped with board games
• A high-end boutique ‘Sandouk’ to take back gifts and souvenir

In 8 days, it will cover 8cities highlighting its major attraction sites initiating from Delhi to Jaipur

,  Ranthambore- Fatehpur Sikri, Agra, Gwalior, Orchha Khajuraho, Varanasi, Lucknow and back to Delhi.

As accepted and loved by all of us, a picture is worth 1000 words so.... I am gonna share the destinations which will surely leave you feeling WOW ! and crave for getting this experience.

THE ROYAL a.k.a MAHARAJA - !                  

At the station

Welcome !

         Interiors : 

       

Glimpse to some places among many to be covered :

Amber fort, Jaipur
totally majestic [personnel experience]

Amber fort - interiors

Sawai Mansingh II Museum

Hawa Mahal

Ranthambore National Park

                                                Place which doesn't require any caption  

temples at Khajuraho

In the end, here is the appropriate link for booking for this as well as other such royal trips The Maharaja- Booking details. which are part of my this sub - series of posts "Stay aboard Heritage Tracks" You can read about the previous post here : Recount #008 : Stay aboard Heritage Tracks Chapter 1

I am sure this must have captivated you. And for more, do visit !!!

Till then keep travelling and exploring...

Recount #008 : Stay aboard Heritage Tracks Chapter 1

Hello all fabulous people. First of all, thank you so so so much for an amazing response and appreciating my writing. I hope to keep up all of you with amazing and exiting incidents about The Majestic Indian Railways..........

Its my 8th post and I am going to initiate four inclusive chapters forming *The Heritage Tracks of India* Its the magnificent, royal and elegant beauties of Indian Railways which will leave you flabbergasted and astound to the pinnacle. Okay...fine........ I might sound a bit stretchy and exaggerating but honestly these trains are mesmerizing and definitely accessorize India.

So, here I start with the post : **Stay aboard Heritage Tracks Chapter 1**

STEAM EXPRESS: THE FAIRY QUEEN

The Fairy Queen is aptly placed at the top rank of heritage train. The reason being that it is the oldest rolling locomotive of the world certified by Guinness Book of World Records  ! Pretty amazed **What say !**

It was first put on the track in 1855 by East India Company. It served till 1908 and made a comeback on 1st of February,1997. Since then, it commutes from Delhi to Alwar (Rajasthan).

Indian Railways has brilliantly used this elegant locomotive by providing tourists to reach the picturesque town of Alwar the same day, from where the guests are taken to Sariska Tiger Reserve for an overnight stay. Its a unique two days all-inclusive package combining thrill, romance, wildlife and steam heritage on the Fairy Queen. Isn't it brilliant. It's definitely part of my wishlist. What about you ????? Though, the engine is time to time replaced with a 1965 built steam engine so as to keep in maintenance.

The tour package is undertaken by Rajasthan Tourism Development Corporation (RTDC). The train departs every 2nd and 4th Saturday morning from New Delhi. This 60 seater Air-Conditioned Chair Car Saloon Car is hauled by a steam engine & vows to take you back 50 years in time for once-in-a lifetime experience.

You are met by the guide on arrival at Alwar Railway Station in the afternoon and transferred to Sariska by Deluxe Buses for overnight stay in RTDC Tiger Den Forest Lodge or any of the other guest houses. 

I should definitely tell you that Sariska is a Wildlife Sanctuary and home the Royal Bengal Tigers among the other wildlife preserved species like leopard, jungle cat, caracal, striped hyena, golden jackal, chital, sambhar, nilgai, chinkara, four-horned antelope 'chousingha' , wild boar, hare, hanuman langur, Rhesus monkeys, and plenty of bird species and reptiles with lush green vegetation. Just Wow!!!

The Royal Bengal Tige

Alwar Museum entran

En route one gets to see the serene Siliserh Lake.You can see yourself from the pic below.

The tour carries on with evening enjoy cultural program at Sariska. On Sunday early morning proceed for Canter Excursion to Sariska Tiger Reserve. Later one visits museum in Alwar town which secures belongings of the royal families to culture to history which is captive. Followed by boarding the train by noon and arrive back in New Delhi on Sunday evening.

Siliserh Lake

I hope this virtual miniature actually enthrall you to travel and unravel yourself this amazing trip on none other than *The Fairy Queen*

So, just google....plan up.......and aboard this trip which will surely give you a magical experience. It is a Fairy Queen.

Till then keep travelling. 

Rise and Shine. 

Recount #007 : unraveling history ||stage 3||

Hello fellas........

I immensely totally surely bet that you all are having an awesome blossom amazing time.......

Every jiffy has some precious moments...either earn from it or learn from it. If both....its brilliant !!!

So here I am, continuing with last blast from the past......I hope it delights you in :)

By end of the century, India was like a choco lava cake for giant Railways companies. One bite was enough to sink in ! To bring about co-ordination in working and time tables.... Sir Thomas Robertson was appointed as Special commissioner due to whose efforts Railway Board was formed in 1905. Railway mileage reached till 24,750 miles in India.

Regrouping was first put on paper by 1904 but got materialized after world war.

India was geographically divided into three regions :

1. Western Division consisting of : Great Indian Peninsula , Bombay Boroda Central India(BBCI), North Western, Jodhpur, Bikaner together with branch and feeder railways in their areas.

2. Eastern Division consisting of : EIR, Oudh & Rohilkund, Bengal & North Western, Rohilkund & Kumaon, Assam Bengal, Bengal Nagpur(BNR), East Bengal (EBR).

3. Southern Division consisting of : Madras Railway, Southern Marhatta, South Indian, Nizam together with ports and local railways.

1910 Railway Map

Both the World Wars brought lot of strain in railways production. As railways were used to manufacture shells and other military requirements. After Independence, in early 1950s zonal grouping began. Northern railways, eastern railways and North-eastern railways were formed.

In 1980, Railways Act, 1890 was replaced by Railways Act, 1989 which updated all the legal framework for railways in India. Since then new amendments have always been introduced. 

2013 was marked as 160th anniversary since 1st passenger train was initiated.

That is all in the history..

I hope you all liked it. It would be great to know your views.

Will bring more amazing details in my next segmentTill then keep travelling.

Rise and shine.

Recount #006 : unraveling history ||stage:2||

Hola dear readers !!!!

Not wasting ANYmore of the time...... I am bringing the next segment *stage 2* for unraveling the history. I hope reading the previous line is not making any one thinking....history of what ???? for that you have to really look the URL posted up !!!! huh.....;p

Anyways... continuing from where I left :

After the failure of the Red Hill Rail Road line... it was clear to all, that conditions in India were a lot different from Britain. Seeing India's topography, high mountains, stretches of deserts, dense forests with extreme climatic conditions their was no doubt left regarding zero-feasibility for railways construction.

But the railways was constructed ...the first to be built in Asia. The main reason to push the railway project was huge distances among cities and the need for quick transport of cotton and other goods.Another need was handling of the massive population by deploying troops and army by the Britishers.

These two reasons were enough for forming a mutual *thumbs-up* by East Indian Railway Company and Great India Peninsula Railway. These two were the Railway companies established by East India Company, the then rulers of India. These companies buckled up and started up working in their respective area.

I can actually feel the fire of competition that must have been raging in administrates of both the companies. The value for being the first is immense. Obviously, it was "I created the history and you followed" situation. The only crisis was whose statement will it be !

But, on the positive note : it was a healthy competition in which people focused more on their constructive side and not on destructive side.

Ending the curiosity........the first official Indian railway on Indian sub-continent was built by Great India Peninsula Railway. 

On April 16th, 3: 35 pm the first train in India leaves Bombay for Thane. Isn't it wow ! One can actually sense the gravity of this situation. 

"amidst the loud applause of a vast multitude and to the salute of 21 guns." The train consisting of 14 carriages was hauled by three locomotives named Sultan, Sindh and Sahib with 400 VVIPs The formal inauguration ceremony was performed on 16th April 1853, when 14 railway carriages carrying about 400 guests left Bori Bunder at 3.35 PM.

                      

(L)Railway Bridge on Bhore Ghaut Incline.Photographic print Date: 1855 (R)  Bhore Incline, near Bombay

Well, the railway route in proceeding years were added on and yeah! the great Indian railways standing now reached its adolescence !

East Indian Railway Company accomplished their task an year ahead. Their beauty, the first passenger train steamed out of Howrah station destined for Hoogly, a distance of 24 miles, on 15th August, 1854. Thus the first section of the East Indian Railway was opened to public traffic, inaugurating the beginning of railway transport on the Eastern side of the sub-continent. 

From this time, the company ran regular services, morning and evening, between Howrah and Hoogli with stops at Bally, Srerampore and Chandannagar.

Then their was no reaching back. Like a ravishing raging strong beheaded adult , Indian
Railways carried on........

With the success of these companies, other companies started investing in large numbers. The profits were immense. Like Boom !!!! the lands were getting carved in the name of transportation.

Well....we are all aware of ...what happens.....when someone flying high.....their comes a time.....its shown route to the ground......Same thing happened here also....The chaos by the companies was necessary to be tackled.

So what happened ?????

We will see in the next segment !!!!!

Till then keep reading, keep travelling and keep enjoying

Rise and Shine

Recount #005 : unraveling history ||stage:1||

Hello people.

I am back.....not with a bang but with history......yessss  HISTORY...... I know it may sound boring to some and few might not read a word more. The fact is, going through history is not  boring but the way it is presented is. For example watching gladiator is more impact full to the same amount of population than reading the same in 2000.pages
Though, I respect everybody's choices and personnel preferences. :) :) :)

Although, I belong to a hardcore science community but I enjoy digging up history in the books. According to me, its like a past mystery unfolding again !

Anyways, continuing with where I left, I bring *HISTORY* about the Indian Railways. The How's, the what's and the When's; in short the initial essentials of the present network of majestic Indian Railways.

I hope you all enjoy going through the post !!!!

The Beginning

•  Time I am about to talk about is the period when India was fully colonized under British empire. To overcome the issues of traveling, communication and transport of goods like cotton, the project of building rails was put up.

The seed or the idea was initiated first on paper by Sir Rowland Macdonalds Stephensons who was a 19th century railway engineer and instrumental in building the East India Railway in the then British India. His paper titled 'Report upon the Practicability and Advantages of the Introduction of Railways into British India', which has been digitized by Google from University of Michigan. I wonder, such a long title would be accepted and appreciated for any report now a days !
But, isn't it shouting elegance and impact-fullness. Imagine Robert Downey Jr. speaking as Sherlock Holmes.
;p

An interesting plot upholding the curiosity quotient is, why exactly the report was made !  What was the need to have an official printed compiled points when it could have been materialized on the table.

Its like publishing the report before doing the Ph D.

   
• The answer takes us to flipping the pages a decade backward in the year 1935 when an experimental

line was laid near Chintadripet, a city near Chennai, Tamil Nadu. Yeah, the Ph. D was done. ;p
It was an initiation by Captain Cotton to let people know how building railways as a mode of easy conveyance can just double the annual savings. The Government gave the nod and trials were done. But, this experiment gradually lost the interest and declined within a span of 10 years.

The exact reasons are not known or to be precise not declared ! But a trivial was put up in 1845 The Foreign Quarterly Review May Edition stating - the Red Hill Rail Road perished because of being dependent on a canal near Punalur which occasionally dried there by hindering the travelling causing delay. It looks as an obvious reason but who knows their might be some other speculations. 

**History/Mystery** 

This bridge known as the *Thirteen Arch Bridge* still stands and with the development and new constructions stand sturdy and in use.   :)                                                                                        ==>>

Now we know , how the idea was made, tried, experimented and declined too. So, how did the idea got re-vitalized ? What made it to gain so much momentum that their was no looking back ?

That we will see in the next blog unraveling history ||stage: 2|| which will be posted up soon.  

Till then keep travelling.... keep reading .... keep enjoying.

I hope you all enjoyed reading my blog..... Do comment and share. Feel free to add upon any information !

Rise and Shine

Recount #004 *amazing facts : part 3*

A very Namaste to all. :) :) :)

I am back with the last part of amazing facts about the Indian railways. I hope the amazing part is actually sounding  or reading **to be precise** ;p amazing for all !!!!

 Do comment people......It will be appreciated ! Thanks a lot !!!!!

So.....continuing :-

Fact 11 :-

To start with, I present Longest Railway Platform of what ? 'India'. Nah ! The world . Yes,...... 
Kharagpur is the city situated in eastern side of India in the parameters of state West Bengal. And this same city has the*longest* railway station in the world !!!!
As a student, I always heard the city name only to mention the famous engineering college - Indian Institute of Technology branch - kharagpur. Frankly speaking, this train fact caught my interest equally leaving me surprised and yes amazed ;p !!!

Fact 12:-

Longest railway Bridge :- Well, this title was a bit tricky as I found many competeting bridges.One
mentioned in Indian Railway official website is the Nehru setu built upon Sone river(Bihar), a stretch of  3.064 m (10,052 feet).
It was built in 1900. But, it has been taken over by many rail-cum-road and only rail mode bridges. So, the most recently built and the actually longest railway bridge is Vembanad Rail Bridge spanning 4,620 m (15,160 feet) over Vembanad Lake in Kochi, Kerala. 

Fact 13 :- 

Karbude tunnel

Every couple's choice of rail route.....one with the longest tunnel and also, *not to forget* every thief's choice too. Lol !
Officially, Karbude tunnel of the Konkan railways covering 6.5km of the rail-track is the longest tunnel.  It connects Mumbai and Mangalore cities.
Recently in 2013 a  tunnel named as Pir Panjal Railway Tunnel was constructed on Jammu Tawi -Udhampur - Srinagar-Baramulla- Railway link (These are the prominent cities of Jammu & Kashmir). It covers a distance 11.215 km (7 mile) and shortens the connecting distance by 17km. It shows the brillian work of engineers as it is really tough to build such architectures over Himalayan ranges. Commendable !


          Pir Panja Railway Tunnel.

Fact 14 :-

Indian railways fastest train award goes to - Bhopal Shatabdi (official name - New Delhi - Habibganj Shatabdi Express).
It connects Delhi (capital) to the centrally located state, Madhya Pradesh city, Bhopal. More interesting things about this train are :-

• Firstly, it travels at a speed of 84km/hr (52mph).
• Secondly, it was the first among the shatabdi trains to be launched.
• Thirdly, last but not the least, I have travelled in it. ;p

 Its a brilliant journey. The only point which made me uncomfortable was being seated for 8 hrs. Sighhhh ! 

Fact 15 :-

inside view

Oldest Preserved Locomotive is is **The Fairy Queen** launched in 1855 and is still in working condition ! It is among the royal trains of the country. It was built in West Bengal region with the parts exported from England by the then ruling East India Company.  It has been restored in fully functioning mode in 1997. Its a steam train which travels from New Delhi Cantonment station to city Alwar (Rajasthan).
 Only 60 passengers can be accommodated in two coaches. It works only on 2nd and 4th saturdays in months October to March and is part of a two day tour. It is among the hot list of travel lovers.

                            

Only this much for today......

Thank you all for liking my posts which encourages me more to write and post ASAP.

Do comment. If any queries or doubt feel free to ask and express. 

Till then Keep travelling !

Rise and shine

Recount #003 *amazing facts : part 2*

Hola people. I am back with the part 2 of fascinating facts about Indian Railways.

Today i am putting up some information about the stations......the USB s of Railways.

Fact 05 :
Shortest Station Name .
If someone asks - whats important in knowing the shortest station name; answer would be 'Nothing'. But, its never bad to know something. What say ! Well, the shortest station name is the station called Ib in Orissa.


Fact 06 :

After the  shortest, how can one not name the longest station name. It is - 
Sri Venkatanarasimharajuvariapeta in Tamil Nadu. Phew, 32 alphabet long. You know, the good as well as the confusing thing of having a long name is.....that you can have many nick names. ;p






Fact 07 : 
The busiest railway station of India is Lucknow station (Uttar Pradesh). For the most obvious reasons of being the post populated state, a junction and amazing textile industry including clothing of chicken embroidery;  Lucknow is the busiest station. 

          truly majestic, isn't it !   

Fact 08 :

One more longest fact ....this time its the route.

The longest route covered is by the train Vivek Express which runs from Dibrugarh(Assam) to Kanyakumari(Tamil Nadu) coveing a huge distance of total 4286km(2663.2 miles). in three days 10 hours and 15mins. I am thinking about the people in the last 15minutes !!! 

Fact 09:

Shortest run. its really a shortest one... a three km. ride from station Nagpur(designated as orange city of India) to Ajni. Ajni basically comes in the district of Nagpur but serves as an extended city station among 5 small sub-cities of Nagpur.

Fact 10:

Longest run for a Daily Train is by Kerala Express which travels 3054km. in 42.5hrs. Though, its not

a surprise as there are many trains which travels huge distances to connect the cities and towns of 7th largest country of the world. As I have been to Kerala, travelling in train would actually be an amazing option for travel lovers. You can imagine the scenic beauty just from the pic captured from the Kerala Express.. That's, why Kerala is called as God's own country. Truly WOW !

Just this much for today.Will be back with more fun facts.Hope you all enjoyed.Leave a comment or two.Till then, keep travelling !