Much cherished visits to Kerala by the erstwhile 1081/82

Travel by 1081 DOWN for a 6 year old in 1980s

Railfanning has developed as hobby in me from my yesteryear journeys from Mumbai to Kerala. In the late 1980s, when Jayanti Janata Express or 1081/82 was the train to Kerala, I used to insist my parents to board from Victoria Terminus (VT). As going beyond Matunga meant seeing a lot of maroon coaches (Gaonwalli Gaadi as I used to refer to them) .The exciting walk from Suburban to Mainline platforms holding the water bottles(flask styled) and Dad making his extra effort to carry the wheel less Suitcases still gives me goose bumps. I always wanted to find a job at Bombay - Fort area so that I could travel to VT and enjoy the sights. Luckily, later on, I was employed at Taj President and enjoyed awesome rides to CST for more than 5 years. 1081 was a wonderful train. It got the WCMs and I used to be really scared to look at its monstrous face. The best part was day light journey through the Ghats and reaching Pune for early dinner which was always packed from home. Since journeys were always in October (Diwali Chutti) or summer vacations, the next day was going to be a warm and super hot journey through arid Andhra Pradesh. I used to wake up early to see Gulbarga go past and by the time Raichur arrived, it was time for tea and engines were different. It took me a few years to understand why they changed to diesel engines in the night. By 9 am itself the coach would start baking in the summer heat but my eyes would always be peering through the window, so much so that every long train journey led to an ear infection with the dust and heat beating on the face all day and night long. At Guntakal, steam engines were a sight to behold and I faintly remember seeing smaller tracks (meter gauge) enroute too. By Cuddapah, the barren land and non-descript hills with boulder like huge stones in the near distance always kept me puzzled. Late evening as we are approaching Tamilnadu, the enthusiasm in the small kid is slowly going down and he is getting restless to see his native place. The train used to stop at way side stations for long durations and still seemed to be reaching Kerala on time. There was no Samit’s Rail Atlas or Erail or indiarailinfo.com to help me know which is the next station expected, but earlier travels were a hint to foresee the oncoming ones. Running to fill the water bottle at big stations with Dad excited me endlessly. Being able to stroll on an unknown station had its own joys. The second night was longer as we need to sleep early to wake up early to alight at Irinjalakuda (IJK), a wayside station after Thrissur as my paternal house was close to it. That station had low platforms and getting off the train used to be a task in itself. There were no autos, barely one or 2 waiting. Those are the memories of the 1081Down or the current day 16381 crawler.

Return travel by 1082 UP.

Those were the days when boarding a train at Trichur (TCR) were considered no less than a Thrissur Pooram. There were a lot of passengers boarding train to Bombay from TCR but almost all of that were into just 2-3 coaches of the entire rake. It was chaos at its best. This is before e-tickets were born. Those were the days when Bombaywallas were elite and had as much respect as the Gulfwalla. So it was evident that when a Bombaykaaran (Bombaywalla) returned from his native place, half his family accompanied him to the station to bid goodbye. There have been cases where we 3 passengers (mom, dad and me) had almost 10 platform ticket holding uncles and aunts coming to see us off. Needless to say, a paper carton bag was inevitable from each person coming to see you off. So when you left Bombay with 3 bags, you would be returning back with at least 7-8 bags. The coir which is so abundant in Kerala is used to pack them all. I used to hate holding them as it was very itchy to hands on prolonged exposure to tiny soft hands. But, I loved the items inside those cartons. It invariably had (depending upon the season),Coconuts, Cashews, Rice flour, "Pure" Coconut oil from your own in-house mills, tamarind, jackfruit, mangoes and loads of different types of appams and pickles. You cannot say no to anyone.

TCR had 3 platforms (even today it has only 3 operational ones. 4th is being built far from the other 3, something like the Virar Platform 8. My maternal house was close to TCR and returning back was never from IJK but from TCR. It was like my mom's bidhai yet again, every year. All uncles, aunts, granny and neighbouring people used to assemble at my maternal house as we said good bye to them. The auto ride to the station was like travelling in vendor compartment with the entire luggage. Mom would have become sombre and as we cross the tracks from PF 1 to Pf 2. I would be the first one to be transported across the tracks with the water bottle. I was the custodian of that important piece of luggage. After every single piece is brought to the platform with the touring platform ticket holding relatives and friends, another round of fun and frolic continued till the Bell and PAS announcement is made for the anticipated arrival of our 1082UP. South of TCR in the far horizon is a curve. So you could hear/see the chugging as it curved and came closer. Heartbeats start beating faster. I am told sternly by mom to hold her hands at all times and luggage will be the responsibility of accompanying uncles. As the train enters, all hell breaks loose. It’s the survival of the fittest and we make it to our seats and await the luggage to come in. One by one, through the commotion, every uncle who entered carried 2 packs and mom would be extra keen in telling them to get off soon. The commotion inside the train at a perfect afternoon in Kerala is humid, full of clamour and continues till we leave the station.

As the engine hoots are heard, sad faces moves towards the windows, on both sides. Departing gift comes in the form of a Cadbury Gems packet from one of my favourite uncle which would make my day. Mom would be crying till Wadakancheri and Me & Dad won't gather any courage to disturb her. We knew time was the best healer. The coach would have been baked already by now and the big question is how everyone accommodates the luggage. During the day, Upper Berth (UB) and Side Upper (Su) do render some help but at night it’s all laid out between 2 Lower Berths (LB).I wait to see the biggest river of Kerala being crossed,"Bharatapuzha" as we head towards the Nilagiri hills beyond Palghat Jn (Palakkad Jn now).I used to love Coimbatore (CBE) for its ultra modern looks of the city. There used to be Flyovers and RUBs close to the station. It was a huge city even then. As Erode arrived, dinner was unpacked and I start relishing the new sun dried Mango Pickle from granny’s kitchen with loads of rice and papaddam.

In both the journeys, food for 1st night used to be normal rice, papaddam and sambar. Second morning it was Idli for breakfast with dry coconut chutney and lunch and dinner used to be lemon rice. It was time to sleep but I did wake up in between to catch Salem and sometimes even Jolarpettai. Had I ever woken up Dad to visit the loo, it would be Arakkonam Jn, late in the night and he would tell me that we are close to Madras. I always wanted to see Madras the capital of South India. By morning, we would have reached Cuddapah and the same ordeal of heat, dust and weird named stations follow through the day. Now, the temperature inside each coach is good enough to ripe the mangoes and Jackfruit and soon the fragrance would be inclined to start stinking by end of day as even a single rot in the entire coach can ensure that everyone gets to know what’s in your carton.

Guntakal, Mantralayalam Road and Raichur again pass through the day. The slack, this train had meant that we rested at wayside stations for long durations. After Raichur, crawl used to get even more and Wadi Junction as ingrained in my mind as one of our family friends had delivered a baby at Wadi station while she was going to Kerala for delivery. They named the poor girl, Wadimol. After Gulbarga, reaching Solapur took us eternity as we would often wait at the outer. Solapur was also time for dinner and hitting the sack again .The next break in sleep would inevitably happen at Pune Junction in middle of the night. It’s still very early for the morning but I can see our train whiz past stations like Vangani, Badlapur and enter Kalyan Junction. Mom would tell me that after a big tunnel, Thane would come and how true she was. After the tunnel came a bridge and then Thane. We used to take 2 autos back home and then neighbouring Maharashtrian uncle helped Dad to pull the entire extra luggage up the stairs to our elevator less 3rd floor home. I would be waiting for day break to meet my friends and share my jugg jugg gaadi trip. Not many would be interested though. They all went straight to fetch eatables from my mom.

I wish to travel once again on that route in the near future to relive those memories. I know, no one from my family would be interested in accompanying me after the advent of Konkan Railways.

Proud of you Mom, for upholding humanity in Mumbai Locals.

Before I get to the incident,let me take your few minutes in describing her,(though I can write a book on her).My mom is 57 year old, a very short woman at 4'7". She has been working at Fort for the past 27 years and has covered more route kms travelling by Mumbai Locals than most of us here. A daily commute of around 95+ km. She is very timid, but very talkative and easily gelling woman we have in our entire family. She is a God fearing individual. During her commutes, she has fallen down many a times,seen accidents, near misses and even birth in the ladies compartment. She prefers to travel in second class as she can make more friends there and it has more breathing space. She has been stuck on trains, seen disruptions, seen sluggish runs, fights, celebrations, kitty parties and even more kinds of locos than me perhaps,considering the late 80s and early 90s commute.She has become fragile and weak but there is no dearth of energy in her.She can toil from predawn to late night. All my efforts to ask her to resign and sit at home get a "strong no" as she believes that the day she stops working, she will go lethargic and diseases will creep in.

Now,coming back to the incident.Commuting from Dombivli in peak hours is a nightmare for the strongest men so it is a no boner that my mom has to spend an extra 25 minutes in commuting in return from Kalyan. It was a Monday of 29th Sept, a day when she woke up with dry cough but decided to go to work as she had an extended week off from Thursday to Sunday. Accordingly,she got down on Dombivli Pf 1 and took a Kalyan slow of 9:07am which returns as 9:27 KYN-CST slow. She got a second seat and as the journey continued, the train got packed and she offered her seat at Bhandup to a woman standing in front of her for a few minutes as a kind gesture. Mom stood up in between the seats as we normally do in packed trains. Standing besides her was a young girl of around 21-22 years old. After a few minutes, this girl(Vinita....found her name later) was feeling dizzy and the movement of the train was making her head swirl. She simply asked 2 women who were already seated to vacate their seat for her as she was not feeling well. The answer by the 2 women was that they were also not feeling well and can't vacate the seat. By then my mom had noticed that her face was getting low on she was almost losing consciousness.Wasting no time, mom asked the lady to whom she had given seat at Bhandup to kindly get up and accommodate Vinita as she was not feeling well. Finally,some people noticed and she got the much needed seat. All this while, Vinita was holding my mom's hand (completely a stranger) with a firm grip as she was losing her consciousness.Even after sitting, she was firmly holding onto my mom's hand and resting her forehead on it for support. Soon help started pouring in and water and sugar was offered by the adjacent ladies. Vinita was getting back to her normal self but yet was not in a position to walk freely. Conversations with her revealed that she worked at Parel and was a Maharashtrian girl living with her family in Mulund. All this while,she was still holding onto mom's hands.Commuters advised that getting down at Parel won't be easy and Currey Road should be fine to make Vinita alight safely.She requested my mom if she can wait till she calls up her brother.Without an iota of hesitation, my mom took the onus of being with her till help from home arrives.With assistance from other fellow commuters,Vinita was safely allowed to alight at Currey Road with my mom in tow.They sat at the bench and called up her brother.

By now,Vinita was in a better state of health.My mom also spoke to her brother,(Vinay ) and calmed him down by assuring to wait till he comes down to Currey Road from Mulund. She also spoke to Vinita's mother over the phone who was crying profusely.Again another round of assurance on the phone was needed. Mom called her office and informed that she would be late.In the meanwhile, they kept chatting and became more acquainted with each other.Vinita said that she is engaged and will be marrying a guy,(Mandar) from Dombivli on Dec 3rd and that off late she was feeling these dizziness when in train.Vinita suddenly realised that Mandar might also be on his way to work and called him. He was in a Fast local at Ghatkopar and heading to CST. He promised to get down at Byculla and trace the route back to Currey Road ASAP.

As time flew,Mandar and Vinay arrived one after the other and Vinita had also recovered by then. Mom insisted that she should visit a doctor and have it sorted out soon.At the end, when they were about to bid goodbye,(Mom towards CST and Vinita and family to Mulund), she asked if my mom would come for their wedding on Dec 3.Mom said," if u call me,I will definitely come".Vinita diligently took down our address and phone number and promised to send her the invite. Finally in a typical Maharashtrian tradition,both Vinita and Mandar touched her feet to take blessings, right there on the Currey Road Platform. With a heartful of joy and eyes full of tears they waited till my mom boarded the train to CST. 

That day when she came home and narrated the incident, I was moved by my mom's gesture and we all appreciated her sense of urgency,ownership and kindness in helping a stranger girl in distress. She had held the spirit of humanity high in the City of Mumbai which rarely has time for anybody.(Especially in locals)....Thanks a lot for a patient reading..

45 minutes of bliss for Railfan & agony for Antirailfan @ Vasai Road.

  

With a lot of deliberation, had I convinced my wife to return home to Dombivli (DI) from Borivali (BVI) via Vasai Road (BSR). She has a First Class (FC) pass from BVI-DDR-DR-KYN, yet decided to accompany me on this route via BSR after I promised her a faster commute of 45 min from BSR to Kopar.

Accordingly we left her house at 15:45, took an auto to BVI East and then fetched a Second Class ticket worth 15 and boarded a VR train to alight at BSR at 16.25.We were put on Down Fast and in spite of a clear run, we were made to wait for a minute at BSR outer before entering Pf 4. The run was good and there was no reason to complain. It was drizzling all the way and the one thing that I miss from the yesteryears over the BSR Creek bridge is the complete loss of the metal girder bridge sound. As the new bridge is Concrete Girder, unless you look out, you fail to notice the creek.

Pf 5 had NZM -ERS Duranto waiting on its technical halt with an SR Alco. I could spot the MEMU waiting on Pf 6 through the open windows of the SL coaches of Duranto. We took the FOB to change platforms and then walk ahead towards Diva (DW) end as suggested by fellow railfan, Aamod Nerurkar to finally find an empty window facing trackside. I knew Duranto would leave before us and we still had 15 minutes for departure. Soon, 14117 entered the last and the adjacent PF 7 with CBE-BKN AC express with the NWR rake in the crisp ICF Raj livery. The charm of ICF livery still gives me goose bumps. It was 16:35 and there was no movement from Duranto.

I was getting sceptical that Duranto might hamper our ON time departure and run. Besides me and my wife were 3 old ladies and a man in late 50s by the window. From their conversations it was amply clear that they have been travelling on this line in the past too. Finally, with a hoot, NZM-ERS Duranto made its slow progress to cross onto the CR lines beyond BSR at 16:40. With the section ahead being devoid of Automatic Block Section, the MEMU was destined for a late departure. As Duranto moved out, I could see a speeding WAP hauled BCT-NDLS Premium making a dash through BSR.  Then CBE -BKN AC which was patiently waiting on the adjacent platform departed. We were now well past our MEMU dep time of 16:45. My wife was increasingly getting restless and though men can't claim to read what women want as per research, I could see tell tale signs of," why did you have to come here, we could have gone by locals to DDR and then DI and reached faster" was written on her face. I was better off not daring to disturb her thought process and just kept peering out of the window deliberately. What was adding insult to injury were the constant jigs by the ladies besides us about the trains on this section getting delayed.

It was 16:55 and we were already delayed by 10 minutes for scheduled departure. Initially, I thought that Duranto must have cleared the line and we should be departing any moment. But soon, JP-YPR Premium AC Express made its way onto the last platform. I prayed that we depart before it. It was 17:05 by now and Bandra-Ajmer Express behind a WAP4 had already crossed us and every horn that we heard created a momentary anxiety of our departure,  only to find that it sounded from the innumerable MRVC locals arriving and departing from BSR.

The anti-RF wife was getting angrier by the second and though I was enjoying the sight of so many trains I normally don’t see (being from CR), the lava inside her was waiting to erupt. Thankfully, when she gets angry, she goes silent. The controller had mind of his own, he allowed the JP-YPR AC Express to depart ahead of us and that meant there was uproar in the coach and commuters were getting restless. It was followed by a humming sound approaching my window on the non platform side and it was GMO WAG9 with Container rake entering the loop line and another WAG9 entered the last Pf at BSR with Oil tanker rake. My prayer was getting louder now for our MEMU's departure. The sequence of both freights with WAG9 crossing each other on both sides of our MEMU will be etched in my memory for a long time. I did not want to see the Oil tanker rake moving ahead as that would mean another damn overtake, even before departure. Thankfully, the jerks which are so customary of freights before coming to a halt could be heard and it indeed came to a dead halt.

MEMU departed at 17:18, a whole 33 minutes behind schedule. As we entered CR territory, freight with WAG7 crossed us at sedate speed. Enroute scenery was the only soothing thing for my better half and as we whizzed past many freights, WDG4, BHEL WAG7 and correctly MUed WDG4s were some of the locos on display. We halted before the LC gate and then trudged slowly to Kopar by 18:00 in 42 minutes. DMU arrived simultaneously on Pf 3. MEMU’s run was good clocking 90kmph on many stretches. Nature was at its best and all one could see was green carpet and water bodies (submerged farms). As we came down the FOB to Pf 1 at Kopar, Pune-Jaipur Express was slowly diverging from mainline to climb up the circular ramp.

To suppress the anger in the anti-RF, a packet of Ferrero Rocher was must and I stopped our auto at the BigBazaar Outlet on our way back home. That finally brought her back into her jovial mood.

Monsoon trip to a farmhouse

The compensatory trip for wife to let me go for my Monsoon Railfanning Sojourn is becoming an annual affair now.What she fails to realize is that I end up going for 2 trips under the disguise of compensation. Not that I am complaining. Her group consists of 6 girls and 5 boys from her MBA gang. We are the only married couple in that group. Some are single and some are in different stages of their relationships. For them its escapism from families to spend time with each other. For us its a break from hectic work schedules and time to relish our oneness.

Search for weekend spots started in the first week of July and Lonavla, Igatpuri, Matheran, Khandala and Alibag were off our radar as they were, ' been there, done that' for all of us. We came across a relatively unheard off place much closer at Atgaon (near Shahpur on NH3). Its called, Dirghayu Farms Agri Resort Pvt Ltd. Its located near the Bhatsa Dam. Our plan was to leave on Friday evening from work and return back by Sunday Evening by spending 2 days and nights at the farm.

This place being off track  from the normal trekking and waterfalls spots people head to during monsoon, we had little or no reviews available on the internet.The package was cheap and we got an AC room for around 1600 bucks per night with all set meals included.The total cost for the trip was approx 20K for 9 people, As unmarried couple were not allowed separate rooms rest of our group contended for a 2 BHK house adjacent to Bhavia and my room. I wanted to ensure that we cut travelling costs and travel by local train to Atgaon and book a Jeep for local site seeing at Atgaon,but the others were quite apprehensive of getting into second class coach of a Kasara local from CST / Kalyan on a Friday evening. Eventually we had to settle to hiring a Mahindra Scorpio from Mumbai itself. It was a cheap deal though.The vehicle was with us for 3 days at 6000 bucks.

Everyone assembled at Andheri by 5:45. I was picked up from Airport Road at 6pm and off we went. Our driver was a young chap who worked for Chembur Fire Brigade and off his duty he drove Jeep for passion and some extra money. He had a pass which allowed him to go through internal roads of unseen Mumbai. Having a man working for Fire Brigade meant that we saved on each and every toll and we witnessed for the first time a road which started from Marol Pipeline, went behind the Renaissance Hotel,Vihar lake periphery , through Bhandup Water Treatment Complex and directly reach Khendipada in Nahur. We passed through multiple check points without any stoppages all thanks to his pass. There was traffic at Navghar and beyond Mulund Check Naka he rarely went below 80.The speedometer was mostly stuck at 100. He had amazing controls of the wheels.

We stopped at few joints in between and at Milestone mark of Nasik 83, Indore 500, we took the right turn to Birwadi, Bhatsa Dam Project. 3 Km inwards was the picnic spot we were headed to. We reached around 10pm as we had multiple stopovers in between. On reaching the resort we checked into our respective rooms .The walk from Reception (which is near the gate) to the rooms is almost 100 meters away lit with Solar LED lights. Both the sides of the walkways are barricaded with nets to prevent animals from criss-crossing it. After keeping our bags we returned back to the dining hall which served us buffet dinner. It was going to be a Set Meal with rice, chapattis,3 veg bhaji, 1 non veg bhaji, salad, papad and Aamras.

Though it wasn't great in terms of variety, everything that was served was very tasty, being farm fresh. We returned back and had fun and frolic till late midnight before we decided to return back to our separate room at 1 am and sleep. The party continued for others of our group as alcohol was high on their agenda.We being teetotalers, decided to rest after a long hard day for the next morning.The 2 BHK is very budget conscious and functional room and has a small front room and 2 bedrooms on either sides with bathroom and toilet connected to hall. Our separate room was small but very functional with a wardrobe, bed, ac, cooler (too), bathroom and toilet. Hot water facility is through LPG Geyser.

Everyone was ready by 10 am and when we opened the door, we were welcomed to a green carpet and light drizzle. We walked up to the dining hall and enjoyed the serene,calm and green farm till our eyes could see. Breakfast menu  was Tea/coffee, noodle poha and bread omelette.We had decided to venture out for local site seeing and hence took our jeep further down the Dam road. About 1.5 km on this picturesque village road lies the Bhatsa Dam.It looks like a huge wall of concrete and there are many gates which were off course closed as monsoon this year hasn't been up to the mark.One of the streams was let open from the side and that itself was good enough to go down further to form a small river. The gushing of pure unadulterated water was a sight to behold. After many photo-ops we got down the stream where the flow was controlled and sedate. We spent some time playing around. Then we decided to get to a panoramic point and with some local guidance reached the Govt Guest House at a higher ground which gives a dramatic overview of the dam and the entire reservoir behind it. The clouds had descended and scenery was absolutely stunning. 

We returned back for lunch which was a similar affair like last night's dinner (off course we had different bhaji this time). There was an option of going to Tansa Reservoir but that would have meant travelling for another 15 odd kms hence, we decided to settle in the farm at their swimming pool which is big enough and has a Burma Bridge through the Pool. The standard depth of water was 5 feet and we spent the entire afternoon and late evening in the pool. Adjacent to the pool is a pond where we could see fishes and frogs breeding. We returned back to the dining hall for some hot tea and biscuits as temperature in the environment around us was in 18-20 degrees Celsius. In the night, there was another round of music, dance and jokes after dinner.One thing to be noted is that since the place is in the middle of the farm, between 6-8 pm if you open the door, be rest assured to get a lot of insects waiting to enter your rooms. We devised an idea to close all lights, outside as well as inside before opening the doors and save ourselves from the insect attacks. For people who are petrified of insects I would say a strong "No" to visit this place.

We slept late at 12:30 am and in the morning after the chores and a breakfast session which had missal pav and some egg based pancake, we headed to the in-house bullock cart ride and tractor ride which is complimentary to all guests. Its a small ride through their farm and its funny for people from the cities.We decided to drink,"Aam panna" and head for the 1.5 hr agricultural tour through the farm which includes learning how to identify different flora and fauna,vermiculture and we also experienced planting trees with our own hands. It was a very humbling experience. Everything inside that farm was organic and made from unconventional energy sources. They had solar panels for heating, lighting and fertilizers and pesticides were all made from composing the bio waste and vermiwash.

We had a Jain girl in our group who wanted to visit Manas Mandiram,a Jain temple on the outskirts of Asangaon so we headed to the place and were spell bound by the beauty of the place and the temple surroundings. She changed into traditional attire and visited the temple.We took a periphery walk around the sprawling temple complex, though non Joins are allowed too with proper attire. We bought some sweets and decided to reach Asangaon as me and my wife and 2 others were happy to return back by local train as going back to the farm must have made us lose time.We took 16:44 CST fast and reached Dombivli by 17:31 and home before 18:00 to spend the rest of the evening at home to get ready for the hectic week coming up. We were satisfied with the simple living over the weekend. We had no TV or ultra modern amenities in the farm, so a breakaway from the technology was quite nice. I won't recommend it to people who like  5 Star comforts on vacations. This is more for people who would like to go slow on life and enjoy the silence and serenity of nature.

Now with less than a month to go for the railfanning trip, excitement is building up for the next one on the agenda.

An Alternate to Elevated Kalva-Airoli Rail Link

  Recently, there was a news regarding a proposed elevated rail link between Kalva-Airoli being approved by the State Govt and being sent to the Railway Board(RB) for inclusion in budgetary approvals by Ministry of Railways. I would like to delve into this proposal and reason out why this link is a costly and unnecessary addition to the Mumbai Suburban Network of Central Railways(CR), when an alternate and cheaper solution is at hand.

CR Local Line (CST-Kalyan) and CR Trans-Harbour Line(THB, Thane-Vashi / Panvel) is set to go AC in the next 2 years. Also on the anvil are the additional 2 lines between Thane(TNA) and Diva Jn(DW) with completion expected by 2016. We can safely believe that CST-Kurla (4 lines), Vidyavihar(VVH) - Kalyan(KYN) (6 lines) will be ready in next 2 years of which TNA-DW ( 4 lines) will pass through Kalva, Mumbra and 2 lines will pass through the long Parsik(PSK) tunnel. After the completion of the additional lines between TNA-DW, all the Mail / Express trains will continue to use the PSK tunnel whereas the slow and fast trains will be routed via Kalva-Mumbra.

Pic Courtesy :Wikimapia.

As we proceed north of TNA, 4 lines will diverge towards Kalva and 4 lines (Mail/ Express lines and THB lines) will further travel further north. Now, as the THB lines divulge towards east (Airoli), there is a single line track which forms a triangle at this juncture which connects the PSK tunnel south exit of the Mail/ Express lines with the THB lines towards Airoli. This single line is in a dilapidated state and is used occasionally by freight trains bound to Turbhe APMC Market. The proposed elevated rail link will have to ramp up a few metres before this triangle and cross the 2 Mail / Express lines by a Rail over Rail bridge (ROR) and then proceed a few kms on an elevated path to cross the 4 CR local lines (TNA-DW) again by an ROR bridge and then drop off the ramp just before the Kalva station and carshed.

In the current context, there are slow trains at a frequency of 4 minutes between TNA-DW/KYN and trains between TNA-Vashi / Panvel at a frequency of 10-12 minutes. Assuming that the relatively empty slot between TNA-Vashi schedule is used to introduce trains between Kalyan(KYN)-Vashi(VSH) / Panvel (PNVL) via the proposed elevated link, where is the time slot to allow these KYN-VSH/PNVL trains to join the lines at Kalwa which already has trains running at a gap of 4 minutes. This link will lead to delays and unnecessary congestion for diversions at Kalva as no additional platforms will be made for these trains and will have to use the same 4 platforms used by TNA-KYN lines. (Please note : During the addition of 2 new lines between TNA-DW, 2 platforms for fast track are being built at Kalva and Mumbra). Building an elevated link will have to displace a lot of slums and rehabilitation of Project Affected Persons (PAP) and clearing some private property of title deeds will be a costly affair and might have to face PILs by PAPs.

I would like to propose a cheaper, easier and faster solution as “doubling” of the single line arm which divulges from the Mail/Express lines at PSK South Exit to connect with the THB lines on the already existing triangle and route the KYN-VSH/PNVL trains via the PSK Tunnel to have its first stop after Airoli at DW, Pf 3 & 4 which can be easily made EMU commuter friendly by raising its height and providing passenger amenities which it is currently devoit of. An additional platform can be made at Kopar between the 5^th and 6^th line to cater to these trains as there is enough space on Kopar East to slew the 6^th track to make way for the new island platform. This new platform can cater to the rush of Dombivli city as Dombivli Railway station cannot be expanded further for new platforms for lack of space. Kalyan has vast tracts of land on its east side which can be used to build an additional island platform 8 and 9 for smoother operation of new trains as well as the Mail/Express trains.

The basic purpose of decongesting TNA is achieved as commuters from Kalva, Mumbra bound to VSH/PNVL will have the option of travelling to DW in a relatively empty local to board trains bound to VSH / PNVL from KYN and beyond. The best part is there are no enchroachments and railways can very well use its land to create these new connections. As the fast train corridor will be free of Mail/ Express trains, more fast trains can be introduced in CR and the KYN-VSH trains can share the 5^th, 6^th lines with Express trains as they will have an expected frequency of 1 train in 15 minutes. Sufficient slack can be provided for KYN-VSH/PNVL trains to ensure there are no inordinate delays because of sharing of lines with Mail/Expresses.

I am told by a few experts that MUTP -2 loans are sanctioned for diversifying the Mail/Express lines from the local lines hence the suggestion provided by me would be deemed to be defeating the purpose but my counter argument to them is where would they fit the KYN-VSH/PNVL locals via the elevated link at Kalva which will be already saturated with the CR mainline trains which are running at 4 min frequency. My suggestion can be easily implemented in 2 years instead of the proposed elevated link. I hope the Railway Board doesnt overlook the plan I suggested.

Demotion for a Mumbai Local over the years

                                 Today, let me bring to you the story of a Fast Local which lost out to Mail /Express over the period of time. My memory of this local goes back to when I first started working for Taj around 2005. I don't know if it existed earlier than that in any other form. Those days, I used to live in Thane (TNA) and a new path breaking fast was introduced in the early morning hours.It used to start from Thane and directly came from Kalva Car Shed (KCS) on Pf 4, fill up and leave to CST at 6:10am. The classical stops were Mulund, Ghatkopar(GC), Kurla (CLA), Dadar (DR), Byculla (BY) and finally CST. This local was designed to trail the first UP Fast of the morning from Mulund (MLND).

                                     When it was introduced, there used to be a situation at TNA when Pf 6 & 4 both had fasts towards CST in pre dawn hours. It was unfair to a lot of early morning crowd as this TNA-CST Fast never filled up to the brim as not many commuters could be found for 2 back to back fasts. The saving grace was that the First fast from Karjat (KJT) used to be invariably late on most occasions and some crowd from Pf 6 did spill over into PF4. Remember those were the days of DC Locals and Maximum Permissible Speed (MPS) was 80kmph. The schedule was to use the TNA Pf 4 South End turnout, or the MLND north end turnout and then switch to fast tracks. Since the Mail / Expresses always got precedence, and the KJT - CST Fast had to run behind it, the TNA-CST Fast was always meted a secondary treatment.

                                        

                                   Since Siddheshwar and Vidharbha and many more expresses lined up to use UP fast line,very frequently the TNA-CST fast was given the UP slow line right up to CST. It used to take 45-52 min on most days to reach CST. There have been instances of this fast taking all the turnouts available to switch to Up fast and then back to UP slow. In all those years, I had seen it use TNA south end turnouts,MLND turnouts,Vikhroli (VK) turnouts, Vidyavihar (VVH) turnouts, Matunga (MTN) turnouts, Parel (PR) turnouts and BY turnouts. It was almost impossible to predict which turnout it would take on a day, purely depended on Section Controller.

                                  The next change in Timetable(TT) saw it getting extended to Dombivli (DI) and thus the empty rake came to DI Pf 2 from KCS and it ran slow till MLND and then followed the same halt pattern.Needless to say that again there was no fastness in this. It was just a namesake fast because of the above mentioned reasons. But, more commuters started benefitting as DI to TNA slow stretch got an additional train. Now it was invariably getting to use the VVH turnouts.The death knell struck when Bhandup was added as a halt and VVH crossover was becoming more of a routine from the next TT change.

                               Finally about 3-4 years back the weird fast services on CR started, where trains began running on slow corridor till Ghatkopar (GC) and then started switching to fast track at VVH. This was yet another blow for this fast as it never got an opportunity to cross over at VVH because of incoming Mail/Expresses. Again commuter traffic on this EMU increased as now it was running slow between DI and GC.

                                    In the last Suburban TT, the fast was degraded to a slow and in the present avatar runs as 5:50 DI -CST Slow. It is no more the fast I used but, it continued to be the train I used for daily morning parallel action with M/Es. I changed jobs and now get down at GC, I changed residence to DI, but have persisted with using the same local service over the years.

Start up your day with the CR's 1st UP Fast local to get your adrenaline going ..

My association with the 1st UP Fast local of the day (CR) goes back to 2005.Since my initial working years in Taj to now when I work in Hilton,most of the morning shift commute included this Fast in the itinerary. Those days , it used to run late by 10-20 min as a norm.Very rarely it used to manage to maintain its schedule due to the barrage of incoming M/E Trains,the MPS of 80(DC locals) and the lack of 5th and 6th lines between Thane (TNA) and Ghatkopar (GC).

Things changed when MRVC Siemens made inroads into CR.The 5th,6th lines between TNA and LTT and the 7th line between CST and Mazgaon became the game changers for most UP fast trains in Mumbai Suburban.Yet , it continued to remain low on preference as at least 2-3 times in a week,it used to get delayed by more than 10 min.Then, one day it was reported that the poor station master at Badlapur( BUD) was manhandled by irate commuters as the local was continuously getting late due to higher priority accorded to M/E entering Mumbai in the early morning hours.

For some reason,after that the train has been fairly on time on most days,and even if it doesn't run on time ,it never got late by more than 10 min at Dombivli (DI) and mostly reached CST almost on par with the schedule.

Today, I wanted to catch the same local but knowing that this service almost runs on time,I had lost all hopes of catching it as it was 5:55 am when I got off the auto at DI East.The schedule is 5:54 at DI and 6:21 at GC. A cursory glance at PF 5 of DI,indicated the presence of crowd and I could hear a fast approaching WAP4 horn on UP Fast line as I was climbing the KYN end FOB.The WAP4 hauled train was Jnaneshwari Express and it blasted the platform without caring a damn for the junta with utter disdain.Train Management System (TMS) showed the first fast was scheduled to reach in 6 min so it must have just left KYN station.I took my own sweet time to reach the Middle First Class (FC) as the TMS was counting down from 6 to 0 min as expected. It was MRVC 2005-6 for the service today.We left DI by 6:02. We hit MPS soon and began the chase to hunt down the Jnaneshwari. After following all the caution orders (CO) we slowed down after Parsik Tunnel (PSK) as Jnaneshwari Express was taking extra long time to enter the 6th line. It doesn't have a stop at TNA,so it was more difficult for my MRVC to catch up with it as we had to stop at TNA,MLND and then reach GC.

After a brief halt at TNA,the amazing acceleration power and the amazing CR Motorman got on the job and before we could reach Mulund (MLND),we managed to catch up with the tail lamp of Jnaneshwari. But, an additional stop at MLND meant that the express wiggled out faster and I was left wanting for more action.Not to disappoint me any further the MPS of 100 on 4th line (for MRVC) and the MPS of 90 on 6th line coupled with the "can do" attitude of the motorman and All Greens ahead meant that we finally caught up with the express soon after Vikhroli (VK) and the parallel run at a higher speed meant that the loco of Jnaneshwari and the MRVC Head Code 2005 entered GC simultaneously. We reached GC by 6:29 and though late by 8 min,the revenge was taken and I am sure with All Greens ahead, the first fast would reach CST late by not more than 3-4 minutes.

In a few years from now,this Fast train will start taking the new lines via the longer route of Kalva, Mumbra and yet would be full of zeal to tackle the M/E trains.The new lines between DW and TNA can ensure that CR can run trains at a higher frequency and ensure crowd levels reach acceptable limits in this sector,because unlike WR which is already performing at the peak efficiency of trains all through the day,CR can manage to reduce crowd after new lines are in place as many a slot will become free.

It was just another day in the life of many CR commuters which is otherwise riddled with daily cancellations and heartburn. But the early morning adrenaline which it ensued in me will hold me in good stead for a wonderful day ahead.I curse CR everyday for cancellation of services but when you think they are operating under so much constraints,I want to salute them from the bottom of my heart.

Travelogue of trip to Goa

THE PRELUDE

Though Yours Truly and my Better Half have been to Goa before our wedding as a part of Railfanning trip and College Industrial visit respectively, we hadn't experienced Goa as a holiday destination. Our honeymoon was in Munnar, Thekkady and Alleppey, whereas our other short weekend trips involved Igatpuri, Lonavala and Mahabaleshwar. Hence, when we started planning in mid February for a holiday destination to celebrate my wife's birthday, we were pretty sure of a beach destination and that’s how we decided on Goa. As the second week of April had a long paid weekend and overnight journeys perfectly fitted into our itinerary, we booked by 10111 Konkankanya Express departing on 11th April from Mumbai and return by 10112 departing Goa on 14th April, with hotel stays in Estrela Do Mar Beach Resort at Calangute.  This itinerary ensured that we could work on 11th and board the train late night, sleep through the journey and reach afresh, the next morning. This way we could also welcome my wife’s birthday in Goa on 14th April.

We always start by shopping 2 weeks prior to our short trips and with a long 'To Do ' list prepared in our Smartphone to ensure we don’t forget anything in the last minute. The onus of researching the places of interest and logistics of getting to them always rested on my shoulders being a rail fan. As days progressed, our excitement was growing but, with a lot of office work we had very little time to back our bags and hence decided to do the same on the evening of 11th April after returning early from work by referring to our ‘To Do’ list.

THE D DAY (My Railfanning overtures might turn you off)

A Freight Coach derailment on the early morning of 11th April between Adavali and Nivsar had caused delays in Konkan Railways (KR). I knew the fate of my train depended on the incoming 10104 Mandovi Express as its Rake was shared with our 10111. I had come to work for a 07:00 – 16:00 shift and was glued to the Current Running Status Webpage of KR to see the immaculate controlling. When I left office to reach Andheri (ADH), my wife called up to say that she was going to be terribly late. We also had to pack our bags for Goa Sojourn. I decided to wait for her on the Borivali End Foot over Bridge of ADH and observe the WR controlling of trains as well as the Mumbai Metro zooming above them. I could spot AC Retros, ACDC MRVC, MEMU to Dahanu, WAP hauled Yuva Express and August Kranti Rajdhani express in that one hour railfanning session. Finally, Jab We Met and took a slow train to have a peaceful journey to Dadar, we were already in the Holiday mood. Surprisingly, we got a rather empty fast train to Amaranth at 18:43 from Dadar. After rushing back home, packing our bags with reference to the ‘To Do’ List, we dined with parents and left home at 22:30. Last update of incoming 10104 was that it reached Diva at 21:37 and was expected at 23:00 at CST.

We took 22:44 Fast to Thane (TNA). This was the same train I had taken from Kasara to Dombivli during my Mumbai Suburban Trip. We were made to wait for 11013 LTT Coimbatore Express to cross over to mainline as it departed from Pf 7. After alighting, we went to Pf 7 and moved 14 coach positions from loco to reach our S1 coach indicator. As we waited, 12115 Siddheshwar Express arrived on Pf 5 followed by Shirdi / Pandharpur Fast passenger behind WCAM2.The way it entered the station was so breathtaking as if it didn't have a stop. I told Bhavia to observe how this train which was entering TNA Pf 5 with utter disdain but will eventually stop with very hard braking. She couldn’t believe her eyes and was amazed at the way it came to a standstill within a few seconds.

The Public Address System (PAS) was continuously announcing that the 2 trains were indeed one, and the first segment was 11 coaches long and the remaining was the second train. Soon, Kushinagar Express arrived on Pf 7 with a customary WAP4, which cleared the Pf of a few commuters. In the meanwhile an ALCO brought the 12051 Madgaon Dadar Janshatabdi back to TNA. I explained to Bhavia how this train had left Mumbai early in the morning to Madgaon and returned back.  Ideally the next expected departure from Pf 7 was our 10111 Konkankanya Express but a delayed incoming arrival of our pairing train meant 10111 departed CST delayed by 20 min. I would still say it was a good turnaround story. The last Down Fast local of the day came and went around 23:58. LTT-Amritsar with Dhulia Slip coaches was allowed first use of Pf 7 at 00:10 and finally WDP4# 20043 in LHF mode brought 10111 on the pf. We boarded and got our preferred berths seats 23 and 24 (side lower and upper) in S1, next to Pantry Car and AC Coaches. By the time, we left TNA it was 00:25 and we moved slowly but surely on our path through Parsik Tunnel and then diverted to Panvel Line at Diva. We arrived Panvel around 01:15 and then I locked my luggage to the rings underneath the seats and made our beds and asked Bhavia to take Side Upper and I settled in Side Lower. With Emergency window and the adjacent window open, I dozed off to sleep. I knew our train was running late by an hour and it would keep losing time but it was in our interest as our Check-In Time was 14:00. By morning, we were running late by 2 hours. This meant we would eventually reach Thivim at 11:00hrs.

When we booked for Konkankanya express, I was excited to be onboard the Food Express with Ahuja Caterers to pacify my hunger for train food. Bhavia is not a great fan of Sleeper Class rail journeys and prefers AC accommodation contrary to my aspirations. My day started with equal shares of Tea and Coffee, followed by Idli and Medu vadas. I had cajoled Bhavia to not bother dissuading me from tasting food in this train. After a few minutes, we tasted the Veg Cutlets followed by another round of Tea. After Chiplun, we were chugging along at sedate pace with the innumerable stops for this train. The continuous bridge and tunnel saga continued as we crossed a few trains enroute. Bhavia is a very cautious train traveller and doesn’t like to get down at stations, exactly opposite to my nature. Finally, I convinced her to get down at Ratnagiri as the train will have crew change here. We strolled for a few metres before being back in our hut. Konkankanya stops at almost all stations in Konkan railway after Ratnagiri and serves the population well. Our coach barely had a few people left after Kanakavli and we reached Thivim at 11:00 on the main platform. It’s a miniscule station by Indian Railways standards but quite okay when compared to other stations on Konkan Railways.

GOA  DAY 1( Sedate Start)

The station building exit leads to the ticketing counter as well as a ramp to get out of the station. We used the ramp to slowly come out to the scores of Auto and Cab drivers waiting for passengers. An auto driver offered to take us to our resort in Calangute for Rs.350. We decided to take the bait and off we went in the Typical Goan Auto with doors, sliding glass windows and curtains separating the passenger and driver compartment. The ride was mesmerizing for both of us as suddenly we could feel the narrow roads, the red sand and farming plots with huge billboards almost similar to our native place, Kerala. I had already mapped the journey on my Smartphone and the auto was tracing all the right dots to finally end up at Calangute Panchayat. It was more like a small town with hustling and bustling shops. We entered the Kingdom of Honda Activa and Avenger Bikes. They were omnipresent and riders looked in no hurry to zip through the small alleys. We could see a lot of bare chested men in shorts and skimpily clad women roaming around without any sense of insecurity. Goa gives you the freedom to live your life on your own terms. There is no culture policing here and even though I was coming from Mumbai which is considered to be one of the most cosmopolitan cities in India, this nature of Goa made me feel very liberated from within. We reached Estrela Do Mar Beach Resort within 40 minutes from Thivim.  The Bell desk helped us with our luggage and welcome drink was offered at the reception as we enquired on our reservation. The receptionist asked us to wait for a few minutes at the reception lounge as the check-in time as 14:00 and the resort was running to full capacity.

After sitting for a few minutes, I decided to take a go-around and study the place. The direction signs led me to the beach and I was really excited to see the blue and white waters just at the end of the beach shack of our resort. There were innumerable guests waiting for check-in and check-out. We decided to quench our thirsts in the Resort restaurant. We went back to the reception after sipping on Fruit-Juice to find our rooms ready. After completing the check-in formalities, we were escorted to the Luxury Room 218 located quite close to the restaurant and reception on the 1^st floor. We were happy that the room was very clean and enticing. We decided to freshen up, munch on our already delayed lunch and rest before we hit the beach in the evening. Lunch included Fish Fingers and Chicken Club Sandwich. We dozed off for a few hours and then got ready to hit the beach in the evening.

We walked onto the pristine sands of the beach. The instant sinking feeling and the alluring waves got the better of us and we ventured into knee deep water. The water was very clean. Our resort is on the border of Baga and Calangute. So we decided to stroll through the ankle deep water to as far as we could. April 12^th was a Polling day in Goa and there was blanket ban on Liquor till late evening. All the beach shacks wore a deserted look. The boys and girls on the beach could be heard asking the shack owners about the time when the Liquor would be served again. We are teetotallers and this never bothered us. We were lost in the arms of each other in a lazy stroll. As the sunset approached, Tourism Police started persuading people to return to the beach from deep inside water. Neither was their call imposing or enforcing, yet majority of the revellers took the good advice and returned to the safer environs. We spend a few hours of dusk and night on the beach, reliving our togetherness and charting a new course for our lives. The place is so full of energy, yet gives you some great private moments.

We returned back to the resort restaurant for a special ‘Ghazal Night’.  When we settled at our table, the singer was still dabbling with his instruments. Not knowing, how good or bad the concert was going to be, we decided to wait and watch. Bhavia ordered for a Triple Schezwan Plate and I decided to take the Dinner Buffet to satisfy my hunger pangs. Dinner Buffet included unlimited supplies of ‘Tomato Soup with bread crumps’, ‘Veg Pulav’, ‘Paneer Butter Masala’, ‘ Fish Fry’, ‘Chicken Curry’, ‘Butter Naan’, ‘Gulab Jamun’ and a host of few other Veg curries. I had a paisa vasool meal as the singer had started his renditions. He had belted out some of the most famous ghazals of yesteryears of Jagjit Singh, Pankaj Udhas, Roop Kumar Rathod and Anup Jalota.

After dinner we returned to the reception to enquire about the places to visit. The Travel Desk Agent offered us a one day trip of Goa covering most of the places at a rate of Rs 430 per person. We decided to enrol ourselves for the group trip in a tempo traveller. We returned back to our room and watched TV for sometime before hitting the sack. We had to wake up early to be ready for our Tour, departing at 08:45.

GOA DAY 2 (Sightseeing Spree)

We woke up at 07:00 and after finishing our morning chores and packing the essentials for the day in a single bag pack, we rushed to the beach shack to feast on the buffet breakfast. Our options included Tea/Coffee, fresh fruit juice, bread toast, jam, omelette, idli, poha, cut fruits and porridge. With not much time on our hands we hurried through the first meal of the day. The foreigners were already in their sunbathing suits ready to hit the scorching beach beds as the waves continued to lash the shores while we finished our breakfast. We have an unwritten Service Level Agreement between us. We have granted each other full permission to glance at the beach babes and studs, instead of being hypocritical and pretend to not watch. We believe, window shopping is good for health, since marriage as an institution has instilled a great amount of respect, physically and emotionally to us. There was a lot of skin show on the beach and I did enjoy some uninterrupted viewing from our beach shack.

It was 8:50 by the time we reached the reception for our group trip. The Tempo traveller was waiting for us. We occupied the last 2 seats. Besides us was a Maharashtrian kid with his uber chic mom. Ahead of us were a newly married couple from Bangalore, a small family of 2 kids and parents again from Bangalore and a Tamilian family of 6 members including a pregnant lady, an oldie uncle and an infant. Basically we had representation from most of South West India. We left the resort by 09:10 and hit the highway soon. Hot Indian summer was making it unbearable inside. The driver turned on the AC to cool things a bit. Our first destination was Coco Beach. Each of us contributed Rs 250 to the driver to ensure the ticketing for the forthcoming rides/visits is taken care off.

Coco Beach is rather a jetty were you can walk through shallow waters to get onto medium sized motorboats. Our group decided to stick around together and hence the motorboat hired was exclusively used by our fellow members. As we steered away from the shores the first spotting was the Millionaire’s Palace which overlooked the seas from the high ground. It was supposed to be built in 1960s by a Diamond Merchant at Rs 60 Million. Next on our radar were the overwhelming Fort Aquada and the accompanying Central Jail.  The light houses could be seen on the coastline. Though the old grandeur had taken a back seat, it is still worth a watch from the seas. We must have moved almost a nautical mile into the sea. It was time to spot Dolphins.  Around us were about 5 other motorboats with equal number of enthusiastic tourists like us. We were told that Dolphins peek over the water surface hardly for 3-4 seconds before going down. Everyone within the boat was on the lookout for the elusive dolphins now. After a few minutes, one of the kids in our group yelled out pointing towards one dolphin which was taking a dive back into the ocean. We got a glimpse for 2 seconds. We wanted more. Our boat moved to a different spot and we all waited with baited breath. The dolphins came up once again and this time it was cheered and clapped. After spending another 15 minutes spotting Dolphins in their natural habitat, we were contended and each one of us had a Kodak moment of the Dolphins. We headed back to the shore and returned back to our vehicle.

Next Up on the chart was Old Goa. The feeling of being blessed and an aura of positivity and innumerable prayers could be felt in the church of Bom Jesus, Se Cathedral, and the Archaeological Museum. We offered our prayers with candles for the well being our family and returned to the Bus parking bay to irresistible ice-cream stalls. The summer was getting to us and what better than taking in a lot of fluids. We ensured that we tanked up on a lot of water to avoid dehydration. Our driver insisted on taking us to the Wax Museum. Though not everyone was inclined, eventually everyone succumbed to his persistent requests. The Wax idols were kept in a very cold ambient temperature to prevent melting. We had a guide who took us around showing all the models. Some of the eminent and notable models were of M K Gandhi, Albert Einstein, Radha-Krishna, Mother Teresa, and George Washington, Mahendra Singh Dhoni and a host of Bollywood personalities. After driving along the highway for a few kilometres we took a break at a Trimurthi restaurant. The AC enclosure was empty and we made it our own. We sat with the Honeymoon couple on the same table. We ordered for Naan and Chicken Tikka Masala. The breakfast, we had in the morning was filling and hence we shared the lunch between us. The other couple had ordered for Fish Biryani and Prawns Biryani. Our food was palatable but going by the feedback of the other couple, the fish biryani wasn’t that great as it had just a piece of cooked fish with biryani rice.

We all huddled back into our Tempo and made it to our next destination, the Mangeshi Temple. The parking lot was slightly away from the temple, so we had to walk up to the temple gate. We climbed the steps and were treated to a very visually pleasing Temple structure. To me it looked as if it had drawn inspirations from Hindu-Syrian Culture. At the entrance to the inner sanctum decorum, we realised that we had chicken for lunch and hence decided to not venture any further. We moved around the outer periphery of the temple and clicked the soothing temple pond. The way to the Parking lot has a lot of shops selling Kokam Sharbat. We sipped in 2 glasses to tap some more fluid into our system. Bhavia wanted a temporary tattoo and the hawker promised that it would stay on for a month. It’s a 30 second job to get yourself inked and she proudly showed it off on her wrist for a few more snaps.

The journey continued through the plush areas of Panjim. Our driver halted near a shop to ensure the shoppers in our group could fill up their bags with Cashews and Wines. As we went past many government administrative buildings, we ended up climbing small hills to reach a stretch of promenade called as Dona Paulo. We get great views of the river and sea confluence in the distance. The Zuari Bridge could be seen in the horizon and the steps lead you to the statue of Dona and Paula after whom the place is named.  Some Bollywood movies have been shot here. A doze of Fresh Lime Soda revitalized us and we moved further to our next spot which was Miramar Beach. This is a sandy beach and vast tracts of sand kept a lot of kids engrossed in building their fantasy castles. We couldn’t stop ourselves from having Paani-Puri Mumbai style and Frostik Ice-cream as we sat on a bench close to the beach. The final destination for the day was Boat Cruise.

We headed to the parking lot below the beautiful twin bridges over the Mandovi River. It was 17:10 and the queue to board the cruise was extending onto the adjacent road. After an agonising 20 minute wait, we managed to get on to the topmost deck of Princesa De Goa. The seating capacity was more than 300 and after everyone settled down, The Compere introduced us to the itinerary of the Cruise. DJ started as our Boat left the shore heading downstream to the Arabian Sea. Kids of all ages were encouraged to shake a leg on the podium followed by a traditional welcome dance by Goan attired performers. This was followed by an impromptu session for couples on the boat. We both have left feet and decided to watch it from a distance. The other performances for the day included 1 Portuguese and 1 Konkani dance which were well Time separated by providing the dance floor for men and women to let their hair down and dance to the best of their abilities. Bhavia and your truly had good time spotting the weird dancing uncles and dumb girls. The cruise reached the neck of the river at sunset and as we turned around back to the jetty, Miramar beach and the Marriott’s with their private beach could be seen from our cruise boat. We returned back to the resort by 20:00.

The whole day was very well spent and we wanted to hit the bed as soon as we freshened up. Our bed was nicely decorated with a heart and a swan made from the bath towel. I guess, the Housekeeping staffs were intimated that the room was for a couple. We really appreciated that kind and sweet gesture. Instead of heading to the restaurant, we ordered from in-room dining this time. We feasted on Chicken Biryani and Chicken Lollipop and decided to call it a day.

GOA DAY 3 (Freelancing, Birthday & Anticlimax)

Bhavia always complained about my obsession to check Whatsapp messages on my varied railfanning groups. Today, 14^th April was her birthday and I wanted to give her all the attention and give her no reason to complain. Today was also our last day in Goa as we had to check-out at 11:00 am and catch the 10112 at 18:55 from Thivim. Since the time gap between check-out and train departure was a humongous 8 hours, we first tried to book for a late check-out. The resort was full to the capacity and the Duty Manager conveyed his helplessness. Coming from a Hospitality background, I could understand his dilemma. I had a backup plan in place. We packed our bags and had our Buffet Breakfast, which included Puri, Chole and some English breakfast along with the other accompaniments. We checked-out at 11:00 and kept our bags in the Resort’s Cloak room as the Manager assured us the safety of our bags and also allowed us to return back and use the wash and change facility of the resort near the swimming pool. I checked washrooms on offer and gladly kept our luggage. We ventured out to the Bike stand and hired an Activa for Rs. 300 per day. The vendor kept my Aadhar Card for proof of identity and we tanked up 2 litres for Rs. 80 per litre in 2 intervals during the day.

We started from Calangute and headed north. The road signs in Goa are very good and you rarely need to stop and ask for directions. We left the Calangute Panchayat and after riding the bike for 20 minutes we reached Anjuna Beach. This is a rocky beach and after going down the steep pathway to reach the rock and soaking in the scenery, we returned back to the bike and rode through Arpora and went past Double Tree by Hilton. We headed further north and reached Vagator. There were a lot of college girls playing in the calm beach waters. I wrote Bhavia’s name in sand and we sat and played around in the waters for few minutes. The Chapora Fort can be seen from Vagator on a hill overlooking the beach. It was 13:30 and we had set ourselves a deadline of 16:30 to reach our resort back to freshen up. The Rs. 1000 voucher from Dominos was lying in my bag for a long time now. We go crazy when we see a Dominos outlet. We returned back to Anjuna’s Dominos Pizza Outlet and ordered for our all time favourite, “Chicken Golden Delight Pizza with extra Chicken Toppings”, with “Garlic Bread” and “Chocó Lava”. These are the only items we like in Dominos and we feasted on her birthday in style with these free vouchers.  Next up was shopping for some ethnic bags, T-shirts and Shorts as souvenir for the trip. As I took her around the numerous shops in Calangute, she completed her shopping and was brimming with joy. Finally, we reached the resort by 16:45.

As planned earlier in the day we freshened up and returned the bike to collect my ID Card. We filled the Hotel Feedback Form generously and hired a taxi to Thivim to reach the station by 18:00. After paying off the Taxi Driver as we were moving towards the Station Ramp, an old worried lady of around 60 yrs was waiting with luggage. She looked in our direction and announced, “Don’t leave your Taxi. Trains are all cancelled. Go back to your hotel. There has been an accident.” We were shell shocked to hear that. We reconfirmed it from her and still couldn’t believe our ears. Not wanting to take a chance, we walked up the Ramp to PF1 and the dreaded PAS announcements of 10112 being cancelled were heard loud and clear. The agony on the faces of the passengers waiting on the platform could be seen. We looked at each other in disbelief and uttered the same three words simultaneously, “What the F***”.

Had I kept the Rail fans Whatsapp group ON, we would have been informed about the issue earlier in the day itself and could have chalked out a contingency plan but Digital Detoxing therapy (no whatsapp day) which I practiced meant that I was clueless of this mishap. Immediately turned on my data connection and after 2 minutes the number of unread messages stood at a staggering 1289. I swiped through the messages broadly and found the press release from Mr. Rajendra Akklekar about my train being cancelled. I rued my mistake and was feeling very bad for my wife. It was her birthday and we had spent 3 fabulous days in Goa and the return journey was screwed. I had been on many rail journeys earlier where trains have got late but this was the first time when my train had got cancelled. Bhavia was still in disbelief of the turn of events.

We decided to sit on a bench and plan our further course of action. With a deep breath, I told her that no matter what, we will go home today. Returning back to stay in the hotel was not an option on our mind at 18:30 in the evening. The RED signal lights at both ends of the platforms were a sign of things to come. I told Bhavia that we will take the next flight out and not worry about the expenses incurred. She started looking for tickets on the Panjim-Mumbai sector and found tickets at Rs 9800 for a late night flight of GO AIR departing at 23:55. She said that she will call up her office travel agent and check with him for a cheaper flight. Unfortunately, he answered in the negative and offered tickets only for the next day afternoon. I told Bhavia to not worry about the costs and simply go ahead and book the flight tickets for the same night visible in Cleartrip App. As soon as she checked again for availability, even that flight was out of bound and no flights tickets were available. Immediately, I decided to use the Redbus.in App to ensure that at least we get a seat in a bus as all the alternate modes of transport were filling up fast. We could see last few seats available on Neeta Volvo departing from Ambedkar Garden at 20:30 and 21:30. Not knowing how far the place was from Thivim, we decided to take a safe bet on the 21:30 departure. That gave us 3 hours to reach Ambedkar Garden. I booked 2 seats for a 21:30 departure after enquiring with a railway police and an auto driver for the approximate time and cost needed to reach there. Smartphones saved the day for us. We made online payment and after securing our reservation and receiving an email from Redbus, we ventured out of the station with our luggage back to the Auto stand.

The Auto driver settled for Rs.450 for the ride to Ambedkar Garden from Thivim Railway Station. We were not in a mood to bargain and decided to take it without any further discussion. We left Thivim at 18:45 and decided to inform our parents only after we reach the Pick-up point as these disruptions might cause unwanted headache for them. The ride was very fast and soon we were threading the same routes we had taken to our Boat Cruise on Mandovi. We realised that Ambedkar Garden was in fact near the boat jetty in the busy city centre area near the intra state bus stand. We reached by 19:30 and had 2 hours to kill. We spotted the Neeta office and after confirming our bus timings, we went around the place in the night and then returned back after purchasing a few snacks for the journey. I consoled Bhavia that even though we were struck with an adversity we did the best to circumvent the situation. She agreed and promised to be happy and not worry about the issues we faced in the last leg of the journey as it was something which we did not have a grip on. We called up our parents and described the situation in brief. My mom is very inquisitive in nature and I had to be stern and tell her upfront that she had to listen clearly what I was going to tell before she asks me any further questions. She agreed and then I gave her a gist of the events. She was relieved that we had managed to get ourselves booked on a bus. We asked our families to not worry about us and have a peaceful sleep.

We used the power points at Neeta Office to recharge our mobiles to ensure they lasted till we reached home. At 21:20, the bus arrived and after marking our luggage for Vashi, we ventured into the Neeta Volvo Multi Axle Semi Sleeper (2x2 seating) B9R Series of TNA registration MH-04 8788. Our seat numbers were 15 and 16, which were the third last row in the bus. Seats were reclining and the AC was cooling. There were curtains and bottle holders for every seat which are a standard feature in all the Volvos nowadays. But the comfort of a train journey was missing. With a Bollywood movie playing and some stupid parents with young kids inside the bus, the peace which you look forward to in a night journey was missing. It was very uncomfortable to pretend to sleep in those semi-sleeper seats. Being from Kerala, our long journeys have always been by trains and we were quite accustomed to the environs of free movements in trains. By 00:30, our bus had made innumerable stops to get more passengers onboard. We had wrapped ourselves in the blankets provided on every seat. Yet the feeling of sitting through this agony for the rest of the journey was killing us. With seats reclined, there is hardly any space for even shifting in your seat. Bhavia had a niggling pain in her knees for the past few days and this posture was going to worsen it further. I somehow manage to sleep through the pain but Bhavia had a very troublesome night. At 6:30 am we had entered Pune and early morning as we started the descent down the hills; we stopped at the Food Mall on the Expressway. For some much needed relief, we got out of our seats and walked around the area for a few minutes. Bhavia was in pain and was limping. Gradually after soaking up some sunlight and walking for a few meters, her condition was bearable. We sat through another 90 minutes to get down at Vashi Naka at 09:00. We took an auto back home who charged us 350 and we were home by 9:40.

We spent the rest of the day resting at home and relishing the good moments spent together. I copied all the snaps onto a pen drive and played it on our LCD TV for everyone at home. We also decided to never take Semi-sleeper buses for long journeys. Trains will always be our preferable mode of transport to see India. Hope you were with me through this cumbersome post and did not leave it midway. Thanks a lot for the patient reading.

Nikhil P Karunakaran

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