A railfan's maiden flight

For an eternal railfan to take a flight to a domestic destination means cheating your core hobby.Given a chance, I would have taken the train to Kerala, with wide options like the slow 16345 Netravathi Express, the crawler 11081 Kanyakumari Express, Mumbai-Trivandrum Weekly,the poor man's chariot, 12201 Kochuveli Garib Rath, an awkwardly timed Trivandrum Rajdhani, a crack superfast with limited stop like the Sampark-Kranti Express or Mamata Didi's obsession the LTT-Ernakulam Duranto.


Since it was a new job, getting Privilege Leave was out of question and it had been long since I had been to Kerala in hot summer. My preferred months are Dec and Jan. This time around, we had a family function and my parents were already booked for both to and fro journey on Garib Rath.Last minute tweaking of my leaves ensured, I had an opportunity for a whirlwind tour of Kerala by flight and return by Garib Rath with my parents. So there was yours truly preparing for my maiden flight journey between Mumbai and Kochi.


I had booked my tickets online by Spicejet SG131 to Kochi departing Mumbai at 8:35am & reaching Kochi at 10:40am.Tickets came really cheap at Rs 3600/-. I had done web-checkin to ensure I get a window seat. 8A, it was for me and hoped to avoid the wing in front of my window.Since my luggage was already taken by my parents, I simply had to walk into the airport. With security checks and other formalities on mind, I decided to be early than be on time for my maiden journey.

Accordingly got up at 4am, finished the morning chores and left home at 5am. As soon as I came out of my Complex, an Indica driver stopped by me and asked,,''Station''. I smiled and got in the front seat by the driver.That was a good start for the day. We reached Dombivli station by 5:10am and I took a slow train coming from Kalyan, it was a DC EMU departing at 5:08 am.First Class was empty and I set an alarm for 5:45am to ensure I don't miss my station. But I couldnt sleep with LHB SG coaches of Gorakpur-LTT Express keeping me company on the UP Fast line hauled by the customary WCAM3. I also spotted Indrayani Express with WCAM2. Finally got down at Vidyavihar at 5:55am. The only bus available in the depot was Route 322 to Mahant Nagar, Vileparle. It was the one I wanted to board.Another window seat and the bus driver started the bus at sharp 6am. It seemed he had a heavy doze of NFS Games last night and all I could hear was pumping of gas and hard braking. We vroomed to the Domestic Terminal building 1B by 6:30am.


Last I had been to the domestic airport was almost 7 years ago before the modernisation work was undertaken. First impressions were great. I entered through the Terminal 1B's Gate 1. After the check for ID and E-ticket, I went straight to the web checkin counter of Spicejet and collected my Boarding Pass.The process looked extremely streamlined with luggage being tagged and sent over the conveyor belt. I sat back on the ergonomically designed chairs for a few minutes to soak in the views and admire the transformation it had been through.

I strolled on the Concourse for sometime to see the various Food outlets and then decided to go in through the Security Check. Since I was without any luggage, I passed through the metal detector and my cell phones and keys through the X-ray machine in a matter of seconds. It was 7:20am & my flight was at 8:35. SG131 is a connecting flight between New Delhi-Mumbai-Kochi with an arrival of 7:40am at Mumbai. I was hoping that it would have reached on time. In the concourse for boarding passengers, I saw an ad of Free Wi-Fi in the Airport. I decided to put it to test. As I turned on the wifi on my phone, I was redirected to a login page to put my credentials like my phone number after which the webpage asked me to send an SMS to a mobile number and wait for a unique code. I got the code in few seconds and was on the Wi-Fi highway in a matter of few seconds. Wifi was provided by YOU Broadband and was offering a good speed. I made it a point to access the airport website to check the arrival of my flight from Delhi. I wasnt disappointed as it was on time and had landed. Since I had time on my hands, decided to use the Kiosk of CSIA,the gents washroom and then loiter around seeing PYTs.
At 7:45am announcement for boarding for SG 131 was made from Gate 6. All the junta on the concourse sprung into action. I wanted to catch the glimpses of the inside of our airport so decided to get in line after the initial anxious crowd got in. After getting my Boarding Pass stamped by the Security Girl, walked into a Tata CNG low floor bus in the typical maroon color associated with Spicejet. The bus was airconditioned and to get an unhindered view I decided to take the last window seat as most other seats were laterally placed with little or no opportunity to view the world outside.Our bus left at 8:10am towards the Spicejet aircraft which was no where to be seen. There were many Air India Express, Jet Airways, Indigo aircrafts, with their respective ground staff working. In 5 minutes I could see my SG131 waiting to get me on board. I was praying that my window seat was as seen on website with a clear view and did not have the aircraft wing obstructing my view. Airfield was such a vast expanse of land in the middle of Mumbai that had our builders and encroachers had their way, it would have been taken over in a day. Jokes apart, the area was really well maintained and I am sure if the same discipline is maintained all over our city, it would be more civilized to stay put in the Maximum City. But as Kareena Kapoor says in 'Jab We Met', 'humse hi to bheed banti hai'.....

I boarded my maiden flight from the front entrance near the crew cabin and there were two beauties welcoming us on board..hehe...I took my seat 8A with a young couple seated on 8B and 8C.Luckily my window had an unobstructed view and it seems like the plane was filled to the brim with all the seats taken. The aircraft had all sorts of people inside. Behind me were seated a set of mallu bachelors returning from Gulf and were speaking in pure Trichur mallu slang. In front of me were seated 3 foreigners with an infant. I seemed that the couple had their mother for company for a leisure trip of Kerala. There were infact many infants inside, which I could recognise from the mere orchestra of their cries emanating from every corner of the craft with each putting up a show to match the other. It was 8:25am and the customary announcement by the Cabin Crew about the flying squad members accompanying us to the destination. The boarding stairs were disconnected and the aircrafts doors were sealed. Accompanied by the announcement in Marathi, Hindi, English and Malayalam were the instructions for safety in Hindi and English by a beautiful airhostess. She walked around with poise and checked each passenger for having the safety belt/harness in place. At 8:35, we started moving towards the International Airport at a sedate speed. The aircraft was a Boeing 437 and had a seating capacity of 327. Spicejet is managed by the company which owns the Southern India's biggest media conglomerate, 'Sun Network'. In 5 minutes we were on the taxiway to get on the Main Runway. I could see a poor Kingfisher aircraft languishing in a corner alongwith hordes of other International Airlines. We were third on the list for departure with 2 arrivals expected on the Main Runway. While waiting on the taxiway , I could see the incoming flights and the slums bordering the airport. The new International Terminal is taking shape faster and I am sure that by March 1st, 2013, we would have a new terminal building in place. Finally at 8:50 we made a 90 degree turn to enter the runway and then started our run to touch the sky. I simply loved the vroom of our twin jet engines and the speed it attained in a matter of seconds.The scenary in my window seemed to move faster than I could capture in my mind and finally the friction between my aircraft's tyre and the runway vanished and we were airborne.The excitement cant be explained, but only experienced. While making web checkin, I had ensured to book the left side window, because the landscape would be visible down beneath only on the left side as we would be solely flying over the sea and land would be on our left side. All these minute pre-work ensured that I could see the Bandra-Worli Sealink,the Worli seaface, Marine drive, Colaba and Alibag all go past below at amazing speeds.My interest in geography helped me in identifying the Murud-Janjira fort and the Konkan coastline. The landscape below was soon disappearing underneath the sheath of the white clouds as we were gaining altitude. The rivers and rivulets were shining in the morning sunshine and the beach sand looked golden from top. The first 10 minutes of the flight is such an experience when you can see the clouds below you and feel like a bird flying high up in the air.

Inflight magazine, Spiceroute had some nice writeups keeping me engrossed. One thing that comes to mind is that the speed experienced while gaining altitude is no where to be seen after you end up above the clouds. The earth below and your aircraft seem to move at a very slow speed but that because the lateral distance between us is so much that we hardly recognise the speed at which we are moving. I tried hard to figure out the topography below but it was increasingly becoming difficult. I tried to bury myself in the magazine. The airhostess' started distributing the onboard breakfast. I hadnt ordered for any as I had left home with a heavy breakfast and a jumbo meal was awaiting me at Kerala. It was 10:25am & our flight attendant announced that we were approaching Kochi and asked all of us to be seated with our belts on.

Looking down I could see that the topography had changed dramatically, we were passing over the Niligiri Hills and then over the vast expanses of green dotted with red tilled roofs of houses. The foreigners infront of me were all excited to see the greenery and I guess we were instructed to take a round about before landing. That round-about at a comparatively low height was different perspective of looking at Kerala from the heaven.

On a different note,in economy class seats are cramped up and I would anyday take a train like Rajdhani or Shatabdi if i have time on hands for the sheer pleasure of watching the scenary go past you as well as the fact that it feels so comfortable in those trains, all with meals included.Finally our descend started and we landed on the first greenfield airport of India, the Nedumbassery International Airport, also one of the first kind in India for being built by PPP.After a perfect landing, we veered off the runway to the taxiway at good speed to come to a halt on the tarmac. The alighting stairs were attached and off I came back from my maiden flight experience. On the tarmac was Saudia Airlines and Air India Express.The Kochi airport is built in typical Kerala styled architechure. As I walked into the terminal building, and out into the muggy and humid Kerala weather, I saw many chauffers waiting with placcards for Vivanta by Taj, Le Royal Meridian and other star hotels. I didnt take a prepaid cab, but ventured out to take a diesel auto from the stables of Piaggio to the nearest bus stand which was 8 kms away at Angamaly. The station complex is actually away from Kochi city and was built recently as the old airport built on Wellington island is now used solely by airforce.

My auto travel lasted for 20 minutes and I payed Rs. 100 for those 8kms. I wanted to catch a bus to 'Irinjalakuda' which is in Trichur District. The buses from Angamaly were to places down south as well as to north or central kerala like district headquarters.Since no direct buses to Irinjalakuda were available, I took a KSRTC bus to Trichur which had 3x2 seating. Decided to get down at Chalakudy which was a 12km journey and paid Rs 12. We took the NH47 which was a rubberised 6 lane road. Roads are all rubberised and are smoother than concrete ones in Mumbai. At Angamaly and at the airport, I saw the low floor buses bought under the JNNURM by Kochi Corporation and an old double decker bus still in operation. I got down at Chalakudy at 11:30am and took another bus to Irinjalakuda again a distance of 14kms and paid Rs.12. From Irinjalakuda, I took an auto to reach my ancestral home in 5 minutes by 12:10pm. Later during the day I rode my uncle's Bajaj Discover 125cc and a short 5 minute boat ride to complete all modes of transport in a day.

Not So Happy Holi Time Stories

It’s been long since I have played Holi. But there have been two back to back instances in my life where Holika hasn’t been great to me. The first story goes back to the time when I was in 5th grade. Holi as usual was in Mid-march. Those days’ Final semester exams used to start in the first week of April and all schools closed by April 14.As an 11 yr old, I was a short kid and had a lot of building friends. We had decided to spend the whole day with a lot of fun and fervour.

Those days there were no plastic bags or thiylis, there were only balloons which could be procured from shops, filled with coloured water and thrown at people not expecting it. The meticulous planner that I was, I had informed all my friends to get out of the house sharp at 7:30am with all the pichkaris, colours and balloons.I had standing instructions at home to not dirty the house but was allowed to take buckets of water and go out and play. Dad had got a hose to provide water supply from the tap directly to the door to ensure that his ward didn’t have to venture inside the house to fetch water. After Holika was ignited, the previous night, I came back late but filled up all the balloons to ensure minimum wastage of time on the next morning. I slept at 1am keeping an alarm for 6:30am.

At 6:30 sharp I got up and slowly moved all the equipment, pichkari, balloons, buckets full of water, colour packets and connected the hose to the tap and laid it inside the house right up to the entrance without disturbing my parents. Finally by 7:00 I was ready to ''lallkar'' my friends. Slowly unlocked the door and that’s when mom said, ''hey don’t wear this shirt, change to an older one so that we can throw it after Holi''. The argument seemed justifiable but a waste of precious time; still I decided to change, not to make my mom angry in the morning. After removing the shirt and the vest, I looked around for an old rugged shirt. I was searching the cupboard for an old shirt and mom was standing behind me. She happened to observe a few boils on my back.She inquired about its nature and when it appeared, I had no clue. Then she asked me to turn around and found a few more boils on my torso. Her worst fears had come true. A few more observations on the arms and face revealed that it was ’’chickenpox ''.

Now there was no chance that she was going to allow me to go out and play. It was announced and all hell broke loose. Door was shut and I ran wild inside crying and shouting in anguish. Dad helped mom get all the equipment back into the bathroom. Mom informed neighbours about my plight and asked them to not let their kids come anywhere close to our house for the next few days as chickenpox is known to spread fast amongst kids.With no respite and a worst possible start to the day, I was told in no uncertain terms that the next few days are going to be painful and no school and more importantly all my pre-work of Holi had gone down the drain. I was left with no option but to burst all the balloons one by one inside the bathroom as a stress busting exercise.


The second instance actually started on a very promising note. Having lost out on my Holi celebrations because of chickenpox in 5th grade, I had decided to play it with vengeance the next year (when I was in 6th grade). This time I bought colours and all things associated with Holi well in advance. As planned last year, this year too the time was set as 07:30. The latest addition was plastic bags or thiylis making it even simpler to fill & throw.

This time my parents were a bit lenient, knowing the agony their kid had faced last year. I was allowed to play for longer durations even though exams were starting in the next week. Accordingly, I got up at 07:00 moved all the equipments to the door and as a custom in Trimurthi Co-operative Society, I went banging on the doors of all my neighbours, one by one saying ,''holi hai bhai holi hai, kya chupke baithe ho, baahar niklo''.

Some timid ones let their moms open the door and get gulaaled by yours truly, rest were daring enough to come out on their own. In the 3 floor building that I lived in, all kids fell in the bracket of 5-13 years and 3rd floor were full of boys with a few exceptions, 2nd floor had our girl friends in majority. 1st floor had some weird people with not much activity; they were the tight lipped ones, not many kids on that floor barring a few. And ground floor was a mix of both.The building had a common verandah on each floor, so playing cricket, gaadi gaadi, train train, ghar ghar, xmas, diwali , killa & holi were all on the building premises. Khojagiri was the only thing held on the terrace. After going off on a tangent to describe the building (it was important to describe the same as story can be well understood after that ) coming back to Holi.

My mom is very jovial character and joined me in playing Holi with our neighbours and by 8am the whole floor was playing Holi. Later on the parents went indoors and only the kids were relishing the fun. People on the road and lower floors were targeted. The 3rd floor gang managed to pull out their friends from 2nd floor. Soon it was hit and run being played with picharis and thiylis being employed as guns and hand grenades.Guys were always at an advantage for being from the top floor. Finally by 11:00 it was more of camaraderie than holi fight. Now each of them were non recognisable and I had got Raymond Colour (a variety known to stay on for long) and was plotting it on everyone.

By 11:30 a few went home as their parents insisted on studying for the upcoming exam, but there was no stopping for me & my friends. I had taken pains to revise my lessons well before time and recited it for mom's satisfaction.The group was pouring buckets full of water on each other and it was flowing down the stairs right down to the ground floor and eventually all the colour residues were getting deposited on 1st & ground floor. We were in no mood to stop so kept hurling water, and thiylis down.

One of my friends had sneaked in and shut the door. We decided to not let that guy go off so easily. We kept playing in the verandah and after a few minutes asked that guy to open the door. As soon as he opened the door, the poor guy who by now had a bath was again drenched in colour and the entrance of his house was spoiled beyond recognition. Then was the turn of my good friend and her sister, Priya and Preeti staying on the 2nd floor. They too had a bath and came out in the verandah spotting clean clothes to have a casual view of the aftermath of Holi celebrations.Catching them off guard was my team. We poured a bucket full of water straight down the balcony, drenching them again, head to toe, and leading to loud shrill all around. Happiness on 3rd floor and Gloom on 2nd floor.

Finally when I decided to stop it was 1pm and it took me 1/2 hr to get the colour off my body with a few shades still lingering on the palms, feet, ears and nails. What I hadn’t anticipated was awaiting me as soon as I came out of the bathroom. I was hungry and desperately looking for a sumptuous lunch instead got a barrage of complaints and scolding almost to the verge of getting beaten up by dad. As I was singing in my bathroom, my nemesis' were plotting my death. Priya, Preeti complained so did the neighbour whose entrance was spoiled, and then came the Building Secretary who stayed on 1st floor to complain about colour residue on their floor. My parents pacified them all but eventually shouted their hearts out on the poor and hungry me.

That day, I had played like there was no tomorrow and also wept later on as I haven’t ever later on in life barring a few exceptions. That day I decided that I will never initiate Holi celebrations in my building. Since then it has been a dull and quiet Holi thereafter. Now when I look back, nostalgia still creeps in.

Happy Holi to All who still enjoy it..!!!

Vibrations of a different kind

Though rush hour journeys in Mumbai local trains are full of adventure , anguish, madness and survival of fittest all embroiled into one, we do come across some instances rather different from the usual push and shove. After I joined Hilton Mumbai, my railfanning by the window seat has taken a beating as unlike Taj President where I used to work in shifts allowing me the luxuy of travelling in non-peak hours(if such a thing exists), here I work either 07:00-16:00 , 09:00-18:00 or 11:00-20:00 on weekdays.

For a 11:00-20:00hrs shift I catch the 9:12 Dombivli-CST local which is fully occupied by return commuters from Diva and Kopar. Since I have to get down at Ghtakopar or Vidyavihar, I dont really look for a seat, I am happy holding on to a standing position in the lateral side by the door ensuring the wall behind gives good support to my back as I go through my mails, FB, and IRFCA forum on my cell phone. Standing by the side ensures that the frequent push and pull of the commuters boarding and alighting at different stations don't really bother you much.

As usual, I was standing 3rd from the door by the wall and checking my mails. By the time our local departed from Platform No.2 of Dombivli, the train was fairly crowded and 1st class resembled like a 2nd class compartment. At Kopar, more people made their way in and then that side was completely blocked till Thane as all the other station platforms come on the other side.

I ain't a tall guy at 5'6” but there was a short guy of approximately 5'1'' standing in front of me waiting to alight at Thane.His hands could barely reach the handles on top and was literally standing there with his hands high up in the air. Behind him was an obese man with a buldging tummy. He was almost bending the short guy with his pot belly. Incidentally the pot-belly was also touching my tummy.(which by the way isnt much flat either).

Next station, Diva arrived and the usual war cries and push by the desperados ensured that the short guy couldnt hold onto his initial position and was moving helplessly towards the door. He couldnt see much as the commuters in front of him were blocking his view. He just let out his anguish by asking out loudly to the public in general,”Arrre kaun sa station hai, Diva hai kya Mumbra?? “. One of the unknown faces replied back,”Arre yeh toh Diva hai, Mumbra mein aur tight ho jayegi situation”.

Everyone around couldnt help but smile back at that person for a tongue in cheek comment, except the obese man who was the cause of the short guy's helplessness. After a few seconds everyone was back to their business but I could feel a vibration on my tummy. Assuming it to be a cell phone on vibration mode, I didnt react.But the vibration didnt cease and it was a very awkward feeling thats when I realised that the obese man was literally laughing within himself on the joke which was cracked. He had tried to hide his laughter then and I guess couldnt control it for too long. The vibrations of his tummy were the indications of him trying to laugh within himself.

The short guy who was also experiencing the vibrations, turned back his head and said,”Uncle hassna hai toh jor se hasso naa..aapke pet se hassoge toh gudgudi hoti hai” That lightened up the atmosphere and everyone around simply laughed their hearts out.

Poor BEST Driver

This commuting story comes from yet another BEST bus journey. You might be thinking, what happened to this eternal railfan? No train journeys blogged anymore.Thats because I havent been getting the elusive window seat as commuting time has changed & travelling duration also reduced. On the other hand bus journeys have increased and they seem to be more time consuming & rigorous, though the distance to be traversed is hardly 5 kms.

Ok, now this was like any other evening commute from my hotel near airport to Vidyavihar station by BEST bus 308. Luckily after getting into the bus, I got a window seat and we had just crossed the Airport and moving towards Leela Hotel & then onwards to the ever traffic infested Andheri-Ghatkopar Link road. The distance between Leela & Airport is hardly 500 metres but our bus took 20 minutes and finally turned into the nightmare called Ghatkopar Link road. Our bus must have started from Majas Depot which is far away from Andheri and the drivers of this route(308) can be easily conferred Nobel peace prize for the patience they display to drive along this irritating stretch.

As soon as we turned into the link road towards Sakinaka, my bus was veering close to the footpath instead of the norm of siding with the middle divider as we had to take a right into the Andheri-Kurla road. The road was infested as usual with the debris of metro construction work, 220kv high voltage line digging, the miniscule and irritating 2 & 3 wheelers. All of a sudden, after crossing d MarolNaka stop, our driver parked the bus & turned off the lights & got out off the seat to alight. Harried people inside the bus were shocked and thought if traffic jams werent enough, we have a breakdown of the bus.

Murmurs became louder and inqusitive ones started asking,''master kay jala, bus zaanaar ki nahi''.Conductor was a mute spectator like many of us. Driver did not answer any queries as if he was above the law. He strolled back towards the footpath testing each tyre making others contemplate that we have a puncture to deal with.

Surprisingly none of us heard the air escape from tyres during the journey. Then the driver moved towards the shops lining the footpaths. He was gesturing something to the shopkeepers and each one just shoved him away to a direction which was behind the way we had traversed. After carefully observing, what our driver was gesturing I knew it was nothing related to the bus and more human in nature.

He disappeared from our sight and people inside the dark bus were shouting, yelling and getting jealous of other buses going past us. After 5 minutes our driver returned, turned on the lights and started the bus and all inside heaved a sigh of relief. The conductor who was maintaining a stoic silence till now, said a one liner which made the whole bus burst into laughter and the bus driver a bit embarrased. He said, ''Didnt I tell you not to drink that extra glass of water, see what happens now, that extra glass of water made all of us wait for 5 minutes''
Poor driver !!!

Pole Dancing at the Bus Stop

Today's story comes from the bus stop in front of my hotel.I had left office @ 18:20 & leisurely walking towards the bus stop when an empty bus rushed towards the stop and cleared the crowd gathered there. I had a very busy day @ office and didnt wanna run behind a stupid bus, so decided to wait & watch. It was 18:25 & I knew there was a bus starting from Sahar Cargo Complex which run also relatively empty, so it was worth the wait. Now the busstop is located where employees of ITC Maratha, Hyatt Regency, Hilton Mumbai, Ascot Centre & Blue Dart converge, so you cant make out where a person is coming from.


As I was waiting in anticipation of the bus, I saw a girl walking towards the stop. To describe her, she was wearing black trousers, a white shirt and an open black blazer.Hair tied at back with little spectacles on her face and about 5'3" . She was wheatish in complexion. So a typical Indian girl in office attire. She came and stood near the pole of the busstop.


Soon, she calls up someone and as conversation progresses, she smiles, giggles , maybe she was talking to her sweet heart. People tend to do such things. Next I see is she is literally dangling around the pole with her arms around the pole with phone in her other hand and still giggling. Then she starts going around the pole in slow motion as if strolling in a park. This continues for 4-5 minutes. By now everyone is watching her, but she seems to be in her wonderland.

The bus arrives & everyone is readying to get into it. I get in and secure the last window seat for the long journey ahead and guess what she is still making circles around the pole and laughing into the phone. Finally when the bus makes the intent of moving, she wakes up from her dream and makes futile attempt of running behind it.
Hehehe....

Grabbing a Senior Citizen Seat

One thing everyone would agree with me is hating to stand in a bus with no movement whatsoever for pretty long time because of the traffic ahead. I am habituated to long snarls of traffic from my office to Ghatkopar station. I have even tried walking from Hilton Mumbai International Airport(My office) to Ghatkopar station in flat 55 minutes with innumerable stoppages because of traffic signals, idiotic people on road who have no road sense after finding that my evening commute to either Ghatkopar, Vidyavihar or Kurla by the famed BEST buses took more than 60 minutes and in the worst case even 100 minutes.

Knowing that my brisk walking skills werent put to test since months now, I decided to give it a try a few days back and the results were exciting with an overall 55 minutes to Ghatkopar. I am sure that I can bring that down to 45 -50 minutes. The only day, I covered this distance in 30 minutes by bus was on 26th January on all other days, its been the same. In mornings, it takes about 35-40 minutes from Vidyavihar station where I get a comfortable seat by the window.

My commutes have a twist of long bus journeys and shorter train journeys.The travel from hotel to Vidyavihar is actually a 20 min ride if done at normal speed in early mornings, but for the rest of the day, it takes nothing short of an hour. If you are standing for that long in a bumper to bumper traffic in a BEST bus, you dont need to exercise to stay fit. All parts of the body are jolted, massaged and heckled in all possible ways. Today my story is not about it though.Today its about securing a senior citizen seat for yourself and not being asked to vacate the same. I got into the bus, bought a ticket and moved ahead to the front seats. Its futile standing towards the right side as half the seats are earmarked for ladies. Chances of getting a seat are nil as there are many women vying for it unless you wanna be embarrased to be asked to vacate it.

Yes, there are a few who like to brush shoulders with them. But thats the last thing on mind when you are struggling for space in a crowded bus. I was standing towards the left side where we have the reserved senior and handicapped seats. Looking at the profile of the people sitting in them, none of them qualified to do so. I thought, I was marked for the day and eventually the whole journey was gonna be standing. But suddenly a person got up at the very next stop. I decided to sit. But I knew this was going to be shortlived as at the next stop, 'Sahar Airport' some oldies might get in and demand seats.

Luckily I saw a 4-5 yr old boy standing behind my seat. I pulled that guy and made way for him to sit on my lap, with my bag on one leg. Bag looks very big, though I am hardly carrying anything. For a person looking at me, it was as if I was holding the child and bag, so nobody would dare ask to vacate. At the next stop, a few oldies in 55-60 age bracket got in and demanded seats of all those sitting in the front row. They empathised and never even bothered to ask me. I tried to show my willingness to get up, but one of them said, “nahi nahi, you are actually holding onto the kid, be seated”. I must mention one thing here, the kid was a gem, he did not utter a word and sat as if I was his uncle, no discomfort and we chatted the whole journey...hehehe

A Typical Mallu

A close friend of mine once asked me how does a typical mallu look and behave like. Being a Mallu being asked to define one of his own species is a tough one to answer without being biased. My answer to her was something like this:

(Please note I dont indent to hurt anyone with the following stanzas, its all in a lighter vein)

A typical mallu girl is proud of belonging from Kerala. She believes its her birthright to become a nurse.They are generally very talkative and big gossip queens.Oiling her hair with coconut oil is a must. But truly results are indeed good with majority of them having long and sustainable dark hair. She is proud to come from kerala where female population is more than male population than any part of India. Anyone who has opportunities to learn further goes ahead and does MSc, MCom,MCA, MBA..etc.

Even though gold is liked by womenfolk at large, this Keralite has a penchant for coating herself in gold. On all occassions she believes in wearing gold, head to toe. On her wedding, she is supposed to bring home gold not in grams but in tolas. When she washes her hair, she believes in leaving it open and also using 2 strands of hair from near her ears to tie a knot encompassing them all. Set saree or set mundu(dhoti) is one piece of clothing she is really proud to wear to any occasion be it wedding, funeral. Dhawani is another clothing she looks really good in, but its fast disappearing. Be it Catholic, Hindu or Muslim, basically all mallu girls are god fearing.

A typical mallu guy has a moustache. Believes, its a sign of masculinity. Who will tell him the hindrance it causes while smooching...lol...He believes a lungi or dhoti is the best piece of clothing invented. He wears EastMan Color lungis at home and offwhite or plain white dhoti even to work. Drinking and smoking is his birthright. Its derogatory to even ask if he indulges in such vices. He forms a union wherever he works in kerala.Knows all the loopholes in the system to evade work and fight for his rights and blalantly ignore his duties, though the same mallu slogs like a dog in Gulf or places except Kerala. He believes in remittance of money to his household and wants the best for his family, a palatial house, car and educating his kids.

Most of them consider shaving as an unnecessary daily chore and would like to chuck it, given an opportunity. Like gossiping and also like calling Kerala, God's Own Country. Likes discussing politics between Communists and Congress, so the Kerala Govt changes every 5 yrs.

Kids in Kerala get up every morning to check if the buses are working, if he/she doesnt find vehicular traffic on the road for 2 minutes, he/she goes back to sleep as its a strike day and there is no school or college. This happens at least twice in a week still Kerala has the maximum literacy rate in India.

Naatak kare toh kauwa kate

Here's one more story from my innumerable journeys to work. Today after I got down at Chattrapati Shivaji Terminus, Mumbai(CSTM) and walked to the busstop of BEST 138. A double decker was waiting, but was full of passengers. Since I was early, I decided to leave it and wait for the next one. Before me in the queue was an old mullaji wear the traditional muslim cap. Soon the bus filled to its brim left and the new commuters started to join the queue, majority of whom try to enter from the starting point of the queue as its a long way to enter from the rear end of the queue. At 7:20 am , there are a lot of girls trying to reach G. D. Somani college which is next to Taj President and all of them look from well to do families. But in the same breath, I would like to add that some of them dont believe in civic rules and getting in the queue is not on their priority list.

By now a few girls had joined the queue behind us , but there was this one girl who kept roaming around the start of the queue with the intention of jumping in first when the next bus arrives. She didnt have the manners of falling in line with others. I dont understand why certain people find it derogatory.

Anyways, within seconds, as god sent a crow flew from nowhere , perched on her head and poked her. She was so scared that she let out a loud scream in front of the junta in the queue and scampered for shelter. The mullaji , who was first in the queue just gestured her to go and stand in queue as it has roof on top. All of us in the queue could not help but laugh on her.

A wedding trip to Delhi with Railfanning at the core

THE ITINERARY

Every year my annual leave took me to Kerala via the scenic Konkan and Southern Railways by Netravati Express/Winter Special or Garib Rath. The latest addition, Ernakulum Duranto is not suitable for us so I don’t think I will ever travel by that unless of course, I am travelling alone. But yes, I would like to try out the AC1 coupe of 2 berths in overnight Durantos



But this year the plans were north bound as my cousin was getting married in Delhi on 4th Sept, 2011.We had booked tickets to Hazrat Nizamuddin (NZM) by 12953 August Kranti Rajdhani in AC 3 Tier from Mumbai Central (BCT) on 31st August 2011. This was my maiden journey by any Rajdhani train. I was tempted to book for the 12951 Mumbai -New Delhi Rajdhani but my cousin stayed closer to Hazrat Nizamuddin (NZM) so had to settle for 2953.



Is it possible to go to the Capital and not visit New Delhi Railway Station (NDLS)?
My parents wanted to see the Taj Mahal in Agra and had suggested that we book a cab to travel to Agra and return back the same day. This is where my company and the railfan in me came up with an idea. Fortunately, I am entitled to staying in any of our Brand Hotels for 5 nights in a year and I certainly wanted to make good use of it this time. Plus, I was in no mood to travel by cab to Agra. So finally a long cherished dream of travelling by the fastest train in India took fruit. I booked tickets for the NDLS-Bhopal Shatabdi by AC Chair car for 3 of us till Agra Cantt (AGC). Since I was travelling on Wednesday the 7th Sept, I was assured of a German LHB rake and speeds of 150KMPH...




This also ensured that I end up seeing both NZM and NDLS. We planned to stay at The Gateway Hotel, Fatehabad Road, Agra for 2 nights. Return journey from Agra Cantt was booked on the pride of Central Railways (CR), 12138 Punjab Mail in AC 3 tier on 9th Sept 2011. Since the Departure from Agra was at 8:50 am the entire day journey would be through the unseen areas of UP and MP and Maharashtra would have traversed in the night, which I had seen during my previous visits to Manmad and beyond on a few occasions. Finally, alighting at Kalyan on the morning of 10th Sept 2011.



THE TASK OF REACHING MUMBAI CENTRAL(BCT)


My Dad is an overcautious man. He does not like last minute run-arounds. Our train 12953 BCT-NZM August Kranti Rajdhani has a scheduled departure of 17:40 from BCT and I thought leaving our home in Dombivli at 15:30 should suffice as I was planning to catch a fast train to Dadar and then change to Western line and reach BCT. But, Dad was adamant on leaving early on account of rains. I did not want to argue with him and left home as early as 13:40. (4 hrs prior to the departure of Rajdhani).
As our trip involved a lot of walking, I had ensured that the entire luggage were trolley based. We took an auto from our residence to Dombivli East. I & Mom had Season Tickets to CST, so bought a First Class ticket to BCT for Dad as I did not want him to face the crowd fury in 2nd class. I knew there was a DI-DR slow at 14:19 so we came down the Foot over Bridge (FOB) to Platform (PF) 2 and waited with anticipation for an old DC EMU as my luggage wouldn’t have fitted on the racks of the newer MRVC trains. The middle 1st Class that we boarded was 72345. Our EMU started on time and before we could leave DI I saw GOC WDG3A twins hauling BTPN rakes on 5th line. Giving us company on the fast track was WCAM3 hauled Allahabad-LTT Express with an astounding 9 AC Coaches, H1, HA1, A1, A2, B1-B5 and innumerable sleeper coaches till Diva Jn. We crossed Kalyan Twin Shakti at Diva Junction with BCNA load. We caught up with the Allahabad-LTT again at Thane as it was crossing over to PF 8.


11042 Mumbai-Chennai was hauled by the mighty WDP4 in LHF mode and was making its customary dual halts on PF 5 at Thane. Guntakal Twins were waiting in the Mulund yard with a BCNA rake. In a triple parallel action, A CST Mumbai bound fast train overtook our Dadar Slow and Allahabad-LTT on the fly. It was an exhilarating experience. Following that, Howrah-Mumbai hauled by WCAM3 overtook my slow EMU before KanjurMarg. Sinhagad Express to Pune crossed us at Vikhroli at 15:05. At Vidyavihar a BTPN rake was seen entering 5th line from the yard. After Kurla, I could hear Justin Bieber screaming, “Baby, Baby” from loudspeakers and I knew EID was celebrated in this part of the city with much fervor. We reached Dadar PF 2 at 15:25. I had to buy tickets to BCT for 2 of us, so took the CST end FOB, which was a mistake as the FOB was crowded. After buying tickets with my smart card we waded through the human swarm and alighted on Dadar (WR). We left 2 EMUS and finally took the 3rd EMU to BCT and decided to stand by the door with the luggage. The run was normal and within 10 minutes we reached BCT. After taking the FOB we landed at the outstation terminus. I was coming to BCT after more than 20 years as most of my Western Railway journeys had started from Dadar (WR) or Borivali.


I was carrying a printout of journey details of 12953 Rajdhani, which mentioned that the train would leave from PF 4 and our coach B-6 was 8th from the locomotive. 12951 Mumbai-New Delhi Rajdhani was already berthed on PF1 and its EOG (End-on-Generator) noise was deafening the station premises. Soon, WCAM1 #21814 hauled Gujarat Express arrived on PF 3. After, AK Rajdhani was pushed back into the station from the yard, BCT-Valsad with some Double-Decker coaches were berthed on PF 5.


AUGUST KRANTI RAJDHANI CHUGS OUT

I took my mom on a tour of the train from the pantry car to the 2 tier coaches. Explained her difference in the configurations. She is unknowingly becoming a railfan of sorts. We left dot on time with WCAM2 at our helm. We were made to wait for a few seconds and then allowed on the mainline. We were cruising past the suburban stations. Though we reached Andheri and Borivali before time, our departure was as per schedule. We crossed Virar at 18:40. At Borivali, we overtook; WCAM1 hauled Bandra-Jamnagar Express. The Vaitarna South Bridge was traversed at a lowly 20 kmph speed. The best thing about the LHB coaches for a railfan is that you can peep out of the ventilators of the Loo to see the outside world.  We went past Boisar at 19:10. Soon the BSES Dahanu TPS could be seen on the west side and we flied past Dahanu at 19:20. The SAIL Ads on the windows were turning an eyesore as I could hardly see anything outside with the sun setting in the horizon. We were also getting used to the jerks due to CBC Couplers in the LHB rakes. My mom is strongly against Door-Plating, though I did manage to sneak out a few times by showing intent to visit the loo.




Something about the service:

Our 3 Tier coaches had curtains similar to 2 Tier coaches. As soon as we left BCT, the Bed Roll consisting of 2 Bed sheets, 1 Blanket and 1 Pillow was delivered to our seats. The evening tea was served before Andheri arrived. It consisted of 2 Eclairs, 1 Ghasitaram Sweet, Godrej Jumpin Pinepaple Juice, Cheese Sandwitch, and Tomato Ketchup, 2 Kachoris, Thermos water bottle and a Tea Kit. Rail-Neer bottle with a paper glass, wet tissue, Strip Soap, mouth freshener and napkin too were provided. The Tea-Kit had Dairy whitener, sugar, stirrer and tea bags enough for 2 people. The rail magazine and newspaper were provided in very aisle. After the evening tea, Dad said, he was full and nothing more could go in tonight. I told him, “yeh to shuruvat hai..aage aage dekho hota hai kya….!! “


We reached Vapi at 19:44 and left after 4 minutes halt but I guess there was an Emergency Chain Pulling (ECP) and we came to a standstill abruptly and waited at Vapi for the next 5-10 minutes. The adjacent platform had Bharuch-Virar passenger. But we did manage to reach Valsad at 20:13, where I could see a train with Double Decker coaches.


After Vapi, Veg soup with Bread sticks was served and they tasted really nice. After Valsad, dinner was served. We had ordered for 2 Veg meals for my parents and 1 Non-Veg meal for me. As veg meals were served first, I had to wait till the entire coach got their veg meals. Though my stomach was full, I was anxious to see the Non-Veg Menu. Finally when it arrived, it consisted of 2 Chappattis, 1 bowl of rice, 1 mixed pickle sachet, Amul Masti Dahi, chicken curry with 2 large pieces, dal fry and Strawberry Cup Ice-Cream. Though the quality of chapattis could have been better, overall it was a good meal.


The lights in the horizon were getting brighter and a huge Raghulal Textile Market could be seen. I knew Surat was close and we reached 6 minutes before time. It was time for bed and I took the Lower Berth, Mom was on the adjacent Lower Berth and Dad had to unwillingly take the Middle Berth. We reached Bharuch at 21:36 and left at 21:44. Vadodara came at 22:50 and we departed after a loco change at 23:10. I had strict instructions to not detrain during the night so could not get down to check our new loco. But, I had company in my Whatsapp friends. We kept chatting late into the night till midnight. I was going gaga over the Rajdhani and they were expressing the desire to board it someday.


I got up at 05:25 to find our train waiting at Kota junction. Kota-NZM JanShatabdi was berthed on PF 1A. We reached Sawai Madhopur 5 minutes before time. A few passengers got down here. Saw a WAG9 with container rake enroute. I started the GPS on my Phone and found our train clocking 120-130 kmph. We reached Mathura Jn at 08:45 and as we were before time, I decided to check on our Loco. It was White Beauty WAP5 #30031 from Ghaziabad.





Another WAP5 came to a halt at Mathura with the Taj Express.





The Tea kit was provided in the morning along with 2 Marie Biscuits. At 07:30, Breakfast was provided which consisted of 2 loafs of bread, 2 cutlets with green peas, mixed fruit jam, ketchup, butter and éclairs. We were cruising at a flat 130kmph and I was thinking that we would reach NZM as early as 10:25 as we were passing most of the stations at lightning speed. All hopes of reaching were dashed as we started getting RED after Faridabad. We were made to wait outside Tuglakabad for 10 minutes and at Okhla for another 10 minutes. In between, I got my first glimpse of Metro lines crossing the railway tracks overhead and a Mainline EMU in Yellow and Green livery bound for Palwal. At Tuglakabad, I could see innumerable WAP 5/7 and WAG9s. At 10:55 sharp, we were admitted on PF4 of NZM. The adjacent platform had NZM-Pune Duranto waiting for departure. Secundrabad Rajdhani with ICF coaches were seen on a platform waiting to be shunted out. My cousin sister had come to receive us and we made our way out of the Okhla End FOB. I was elated to see a dozen WAP5/7 waiting for assignments in the pit lines at NZM. I said in my mind, ’Dear Wappies, hope to see you soon in Mumbai with the impending DC-AC conversion of WR’.


MAIDEN METRO TRAVEL




We reached Delhi on 1st September 2011 and did a sightseeing of Delhi area on 2nd September 2011. 3rd-4th September we were busy with the wedding ceremony and 5th September was spent relaxing after the last 2 hectic days. 6th September was the D-Day for my maiden metro travel. My cousin sister had volunteered to take me along the pride of Delhi. We decided to travel from Anand Vihar ISBT to Rajiv Chowk and back.



We took a Green Bus to Anand Vihar ISBT. The fare structure amazed me. It’s a flat Rs. 5,10,15 and so on. The Buses are either Leyland or Tata make. They were well maintained. At Anand Vihar ISBT, I could see a huge expanse of land dedicated for the road transport and the innumerable buses destined for various places lined up beautifully. Anand Vihar Terminus too could be seen on the other side of Metro station. The station was neat and clean. We had to take the escalators twice to reach the 2nd floor level where tickets (token) were available. The Access Controlled entry and exits to the platform was good and there were separate lines for Men and Women. The fare was Rs 16 to Rajiv Chowk. As soon as we entered the platforms on the elevated level, saw the bright indicators mentioning the next train and its expected time. There were pink markers on the floor of the platform for the 1st coach which was designated for ladies. Soon, a Bombardier rake came honking for Dwarka Sector 21 and we boarded the 2nd coach. The Longitudinal seats between the auto closing doors meant there was less seating space but more space to stand. We accelerated well out of the station and the ride quality index must be very high as compared to the Mumbai Suburban’s MRVC rakes. There was little or no noise of the train’s movement within the coach. Most of the stations were elevated or ground level and the stations were much closer. Laxmi Nagar station was crowded and there was an announcement, informing the commuters to alight at Yamuna Bank for those bound for Noida City Centre. Crowd began to swell as we were drawing closer to Rajiv Chowk. We saw a large maintenance facility for the Metro Rakes enroute and there were at least 6 -7 rakes idling on different lines. We had moved from Elevated to Ground (Yamuna Bank) and finally Underground at Barakhamba Road. Some portions of these stations gave me a feel of Vashi and Belapur in Navi-Mumbai. Finally when Rajiv Chowk arrived, it looked as if I was travelling in the Mumbai Suburban Network as there was an equal amount of crowd trying to get in and get out. But the best thing was that the commuters outside had lined up to enter the coach from both sides and the commuters inside were allowed to alight first. A far cry in Mumbai.





Rajiv Chowk has the look and feel of a hip and happening place with a lot of eateries and shops lined up inside the station. The uber cool signages and frequent arrival and departure of metro rakes meant, I was in the heart of the city.







We spent some time roaming around Connaught Place (CP), seeing the Lutyens' Delhi and the Circular Business District reminds me of the Fort Area in Mumbai. The places around Horniman Circle, Asiatic Library in Mumbai give a sense of resemblance. We had mouth watering Raj Kachoris, Shahi Paneer and other delicacies at the huge Haldiram’s outlet in CP. Then we headed back to Anand Vihar. My first impressions of the Delhi Metro were “WOW!!” With the extensive coverage of Delhi, Metro has seriously made commuting an easier option in the otherwise wide and beautiful traffic ridden streets. In terms of infrastructure, Delhi has beaten Mumbai with the expanse of Metro and the up gradation of roads, street furniture and otherwise. Commonwealth Games has done a lot of good for the common Delhite. Our next pit stop
was Agra and what’s better than Bhopal Shatabdi to reach there.


FASTEST TRAIN IN INDIA(BHOPAL SHATABDI)


7th September was the Day I was waiting for since ages. It was a dream comes true of sorts. I was about to travel by the fastest train in India, the mighty Bhopal Shatabdi from NDLS-Agra Cant. (AGC). With departure timings of 06:15, we had to get up at 04:00 am and leave my cousin’s house at 5:15am to reach New Delhi Railway Station (NDLS).



The gleaming façade facade of the station on the PF16 side was beautiful in the early hours. We parked our car in the parking zone and with our luggage took the stairs to the FOB as Bhopal Shatabdi was scheduled to leave from PF1. I had my first glimpse of the escalators at an Indian Railways Station though it was not operational in the morning. As we stood under C4 coach position indicators, ICF Ajmer Shatabdi was shunted onto Pf2 by a TKD WDM2. Punjab Mail to CST departed with a WAP4. Soon WAP5 brought our empty Shatabdi rake and we settled in our seats, WS31, 32 and 33.There were about 20 kids on an excursion in our coach and they were an impatient lot. A few foreigners too were onboard. One look at the reservation chart meant the train was running virtually empty from Agra to Bhopal. 99% of the passengers were bound for Agra.





The wide windows of the LHB rake are a joy for a railfan. After the Ajmer Shatabdi left from Pf2, Dadar-Amritsar arrived with a WAP4. After bidding fond farewell to my cousin, we departed dot on time and to give us company in a parallel run was the Lucknow Shatabdi hauled by WAP7. As both the trains were negotiating the turnouts out of NDLS, we were running at a sedate speed and it continued right up to Tilak Bridge. We parted ways and began approaching Hazrat Nizammudin(NZM). I spotted an NR EMU, Indore-NewDelhi on the way. Rakes of Taj Express, dirty coaches of Mangala Express and NR EMUs could be spotted in the stabling lines.Bangalore Rajdhani was seen moving towards its final destination. We hadn’t hit top speed till we crossed NZM. Then WAP5 started to show its true power and we overtook Punjab Mail at Faridabad. The tea kit was served like in rajdhani. The CBC coupler jerks ensured that a few drops of tea spilled from the glass onto my shirt. We were flying past the stations in a whisker. At Palwal, I could spot three NR EMUs. We slowed down for 5 minutes before Sholaka where we presumably overtook a MEMU. We crossed an unknown express and BCT-NDLS Rajdhani before Hodal. At Kosi Kalan, I saw an empty 12 car and a fully loaded 8 car MEMU. We also went past a WAG9 with Conraj .


It started raining and we slowed down before Chata. At Ajhai we overtook a WAP4 led express with milk tanker wagons just behind the loco. We were constantly hitting high speeds and dropping it to slow down. All that meant that Mathura arrived at 07:45 instead of 07:32. As we were coming to a halt at Mathura Jn, Bandra Terminus-NZM Garib-Rath was departing from the adjacent PF. An SWR rake of SBC-NDLS Express was waiting on the other PF. We left Mathura at 07:49 and saw WAP7 hauled Paschim Express entering the station. Following it on close steps was Jammu Tawi Express. At Runkta, we overtook a WAP7 led SEC rake of an unknown express.


We were running late by only 8 minutes and as we were coming down the Rail-over-rail flyover to AGC, a WAP4 led unknown express was going towards Jaipur. We alighted on Pf1 and the exit was as chaotic as one could get with the Taxi-Drivers and guides trying to lure the tourists. I had already spoken to the chauffer of The Gateway Hotel, Fatehabad Road while we were approaching AGC and he was waiting with my placard at the exit of the station. We were relieved and manage to put our luggage in the boot of the Tata Indigo, he had brought for Pickup. The hotel was a 15 minute drive from the station and we rested the whole day. On 8th Sept we visited the Taj Mahal, Fatehpur Sikhri and bought some Petha for friends in Mumbai. On 9th Sept, we were to board the 12138 Punjab Mail to Kalyan.




PUNJAB MAIL BACK HOME


The 12138 Punjab Mail has a departure timing of 08:55 from AGC so we checked out of the hotel at 08:00 and reached the station by 08:15. Bhopal Shatabdi was expected on Pf 1 and being a Friday, I was expecting an anticlimax of sorts.




As Taj Mahal is closed to visitors on Friday, when the WAP5 arrived, very few people alighted from the train contrary to the scenario 2 days back when we were travelling. After its departure, Amritsar-Bilaspur was expected at 08:30 on PF1 followed by Punjab Mail at 08:50.Secundrabad-NZM Duranto ran through without halting behind a WAP7.



Sachkhand Express from Nanded arrived on PF 3 behind a WAP4 at 08:55. I saw a MEMU waiting on terminal Pf6, which is adjoining and ahead of Pf1 (towards Delhi). I wanted to go and check the MEMU but an announcement of change of platforms for the Punjab Mail to PF5 made it difficult. Almost all of us on the PF1 hurried to the wide FOB with our luggage and came down on PF5. It was 08:40 by now and WAP7 hauled Amritsar –Bilaspur Express arrived on PF1. PF5 looked relatively unfinished; the work on its flooring was going on. There were no coach position indicators and as it extended beyond PF1 a relative coach position judgment was not possible. I was carrying the E-rail printout of the coach position for our train which did mention that the AC coaches were close to the Loco. I decided to check with our own Coach Position Database, Mr. Shantanu Kulkarni (Kalyan) and he answered in the affirmative.


Finally WAP4E hauled Punjab Mail made a sedate entry into the PF5 and we were in the 7th coach from the loco.






After settling down in B1, I noticed Amritsar-Bilaspur was given the Go Ahead. We left late by 15 minutes at 09:10 and overtook the Bilaspur bound express at Mania. Indian Railway Atlas which I had been proudly carrying showed the border of Rajasthan & MP along a river and we crossed it on TSR of 20Kmph. After the bridge there was a TSR of 90kmph. We reached Gwalior at 10:55, late by 15 minutes. Saw a WAM4 on the adjoining PF and we reached Dabra late by 25 minutes.


Something about the service:

I was coming of 2 great journeys in Rajdhani and Shatabdi and naturally the expectations had sky rocketed. Our train was late but as soon as we got in at Agra Cantt, a housekeeping guy came with a broom to clean the coach. This was followed by a mopping exercise. Air Freshener was sprayed with our due permission. Our 3 tier coach had curtains like 2 Tier and the backrest was foldable into the Lower berth and, Middle Berth had to be lowered from locked position on top. The floor was clean, toilets had water and soap dispenser like in my previous 2 train journeys.


For Lunch, we ordered Veg Biryani and Chicken Biryani. We spotted a fort near Datia. By now, the train was delayed by 25 minutes. I wanted to see the lines conversing and divulging from Jhansi (JHS). Nagpur-Jhansi-Agra Passenger was waiting on Pf4 with WAG7 27136.Kanpur-Valsad Express with a WR rake was waiting on Pf2. It was hauled by WAM4. There a lot Diesel Locos at JHS. An inspection carriage with Lucknow WDMs on both ends was idling between PF1 and PF2. There were announcements of Kanyakumari-NZM express arriving on PF5. I did manage to spot a single electrified line approaching JHS. The journey till Lalitpur was done at high speed. I saw an under-construction line approaching from Khajuraho. We were doing good speed till Bina Jn outer where we were detained for 5 minutes. I guess the Level Crossing gate was open. From the train, the passenger yard looked small, but the freight yard was huge. As we were entering the last platform, Ratlam WDM3A with Ahmedabad-Varanasi was departing from Bina. A passenger train was waiting on the adjacent Pf with ET WAM4/6P. Bina-JHS passenger was also seen berthed on a different PF.


It was late afternoon and I was feeling sleepy. Mom was complaining about the lack of eating options in Punjab Mail as the only food items on offer were Veg Cutlet, Omlette and Samosa. Joining the mainlines to CST took a lot of time from the last PF as the crossovers were marked for 10 Kmph. We overtook a passenger with WAM4 at Mandi Bamora at 15:30. At Dewanganj we were put on a loop line. Before I could venture out, an unknown express overtook us. By now we had lost a lot of time and were running late by an hour.






At Nishantapur, as we were waiting on a loop line, NZM-Tirupati Express came and stood besides us on a parallel loop. We slowly crawled into Bhopal Junction, where Chindwara-Delhi Sarai Rohilla was waiting on PF2 with WAP4. I got down on the platform and scouted for some biscuits and patties. We left Bhopal at 18:00 and Habibganj at 18:15. Delay had mounted to 50 minutes and there was no hope of recovery as we had a lot of speed restrictions enroute and the Budni ghat to follow. We reached Hoshangabad at 19:20 and Itarsi Jn at 19:45. NZM-Secundrabad was allowed to overtake us as it did not have a stop at Itarsi. LTT-Guwahati via Jabalpur was expected on one of the PFs and Habibganj-Jabalpur Intercity was ready for departure from PF4. In the night we ordered for Veg thali. It consisted of Paneer bhaji, Dal fry, rice, chappatis and mixed pickle. Food was a letdown in the Punjab Mail. Maybe because I was coming off some great in-train food in Rajdhani and Shatabdi.


I decided to hit the sack soon as I was skeptical of any recovery at Bhusaval or Manmad. When I got up at 05:40, we were at Igatpuri and a WCAM3 and twin WAG5 #236XX were at the helm as we started the descend. We had the customary brake testing halts in the ghats. We reached Kasara at 06:20 and soon the brakers were freed and WCAM3 was ready to go solo till CST. I caught up with Shantanu and checked the options of travelling from Kalyan to Dombivli as boarding the Local train at 07:45 with luggage and alighting at Dombivli was certainly not an option. We were trailing an EMU and finally arrived PF5 at 07:45. As advised by him, we took the FOB to reach the PRS centre on PF1 and took an auto back home.


With this, the long and exciting trip to Delhi came to an end. There were many firsts in this trip and I thoroughly enjoyed every bit of it. Hope I didn’t put you to sleep with this long blog. 
-Nikhil Padinjaroot Karunakaran
Dombivli East
+91-9819250516

Break Journey of a Suburban kind

I have an obsession with being punctual, as I am scared of being late. What this invariably means is that in most scenarios, I leave home early to compensate for the delays in commuting( if any). It was a Saturday and I had a First Aid Training session lined up for me in Office at 9:00. A colleague of mine was also scheduled to attend the session. On Friday night we mutually agreed to meet at the Main Concourse of CST at 8:15 and then proceed to office in one of the best refreshing bus rides available in South Mumbai, the BEST Route 138 from CST to Backbay Depot.

She stays at Dockyard and coming down to CST is a literal cakewalk for her, but I had to meticulously plan this journey as I ain't accustomed to traveling to office for a 9 o'clock Shift. After doing some back-end calculation, I decided to take the 6:56 slow local from Dombivali, which had a scheduled arrival of 8:14 at CST.

Accordingly, I got up at 6:00 , completed the morning chores and after a sumptuous breakfast, took a share auto to the station. The auto driver spent an extra 10 minutes of my precious time as he wanted to fill up all the seats before reaching the station. I ended up missing the 6:56 train and the next scheduled slow local was at 7:04. I wanted to compensate for the 10 minute delay and looked at the Platform No. 5 for a possible fast train. It was scheduled at 7:21. I didn't want to risk getting delayed further as there is a lot of Mail/Express train traffic on the fast tracks in the morning, which sometimes delays the fast trains.

7:04 local is a DC EMU starting from Kalyan with a few empty seats in First Class for the few who manage to plunge into the local before it comes to a halt at Dombivali. I decided to try my luck and jumped onto the foot-board and managed to get a respectable second seat in the opposite direction of travel. I was bound to reach CST by 8:22 and didn't want to irritate my colleague by making her wait at the station, early in the morning. I kept a constant vigil on the fast track to gauge the traffic congestion on them. My DC EMU was a recently POHed(Periodic Overhauled) rake and seemed to be in a pretty good condition. As we were approaching Thane, I saw a Lokmanya Tilak Terminus(LTT) bound express crossing over from the UP Fast tracks to the new lines laid on the Platform No.8 at Thane. This meant the 7:21 fast train with a scheduled arrival at Thane of 7:34 would get a smooth passage after Thane, with no trains ahead of it.

Since my train reached Thane at 7:26 and I was comfortably seated, I didn't think of changing over at Thane. I decided to play the waiting game. My DC EMU was performing beautifully and between Bhandup and KanjurMarg, Latur-CST Express with a WCAM3 at its helm rushed past us in a parallel action on the fast tracks. In all probability the fast train would have been tailing this express. I had an option of getting down at Ghatkopar or Kurla to change platforms to catch the fast train.

The scheduled arrival for my DC emu at Ghatkopar and Kurla would have been 7:46 and 7:52 respectively, whereas for the fast train would have been 7:49 and 7:54 respectively. There was so little time difference between the two, making it difficult for me to decide the place to break my journey. Again the fact that I was seated comfortably dissuaded me from alighting at Ghatkopar as there would have been no scope for sitting in the fast train.

As we came to a halt at Platform 2 of Ghatkopar at 7:45, the fast train, an MRVC 2221-2 Series entered platform 4.My slow local had an extra stop at Vidyavihar before reaching Kurla, but one thing I had keenly observed in the past few days was that there was a long 20Kmph TSR( Temporary Speed Restriction) on the fast tracks at Vidyavihar as the track connection for the new 5th - 6th lines to fast tracks was underway. The fast train had arrived at Ghatkopar 4 minutes before its scheduled departure, hence the motorman would be under the obligation to spend an extra minute at the platform before he could proceed, to adhere to the 3 minute pre-departure rule at intermediate stations. All these nuances helped me to break the journey at Kurla. Accordingly, I got down at Platform 4, ran back to the FOB, and alighted on Platform no 6 and waited with baited breath for the fast train. When the fast train finally arrived, it wasn't crowded and since I had already given myself a fair bit of rest, I decided to stand by the foot-board and see action on the slow tracks. I wanted to see the fast train burn the tracks and overtake as many slow locals as possible to recover my lost 10 minutes.

We had a good run till Matunga and managed to overtake my DC emu on the fly at Sion. I was confident that the MRVC local would help me reach CST on time(8:15). At Dadar, we were made to wait an extra minute as we were again running before time. An added bonanza awaiting me on the slow track at Currey Road was the brand new retrofitted rake of CR, the 9 car 3004-06. I decided to capture its video on my Nokia X6.

After a customary halt at Byculla, and an overtake of a slow local on the fly at Masjid, we entered CST Platform 6 at 8:15. When we halted at Byculla, my colleague called to say that she was delayed and would reach CST late by 10 minutes. I could have very well traveled in the slow local and met her at CST at 8:25, but the break in the journey helped me capture the retrofitted rake and remain punctual for my inner conscience. I didn't tell her that I was running late too, but with some back-end calculations, knowledge of Suburban Timetable and TSR I could successfully recover the lost time.

I walked patiently to the Main Concourse,and repeatedly played the hot new video till she got down from her DC emu and walked towards me with an apologetic face for being late. I don't mind waiting for people but had I been late the reaction on her face could have been much worse and I would have had to come up with explanation, which wouldn't have been expected from a railfan...LOL...

A Visit to Western Railway Exhibition on Indian Railways' 158th Birthday

A week full of hectic work had just come to an end. I was doing an 8.30 am shift in office. When I reached Dombivali station to catch a CST Mumbai Slow local of 06:52 hrs, accidentally met Abhishek Tamhankar waiting for the same train. While we were commuting to work, we discussed the normal stuff a Railfan is known to do. That’s when we decided to go & visit the Western Railway (WR) exhibition on the 158th Birthday of Indian Railways (IR). Accordingly, we informed other Railfans. Many of them had prior commitments, so couldn’t make it except, Karthik Gopalan, Mohit Tandel & Sekharan Sir.

Yours truly and Abhishek Tamhankar were supposed to take the 10.57 CSTM local from Pf 2 at Dombivali. The 10:57 local was a 9 car Jessop rake. We occupied a window seat facing the fast tracks. We saw the Howrah-Mumbai Mail speeding past us on fast tracks behind a WCAM3. We had a close look at the earthwork on the Kalva Side of the twin tunnels of the slow tracks. As we were joining the fast tracks near Thane outer, saw a WCAM3 with Sewagram Express grinding to halt. It was made to halt at Thane outer as Chhapra Express from Lokmanya Tilak Terminus (LTT) was negotiating a 10kmph turnout out of Thane Pf 7. As we came to a halt on Pf 4, we saw a fast MRVC EMU waiting on Pf 5, followed by another fast MRVC EMU on the south end of the station on the down fast line.

The simple inference out of these observations is that, Central Railway (CR) has managed to shift the traffic congestion from Vidyavihar(VVH) to Thane(TNA), because the benefits of commissioning of the 5th-6th lines haven’t accrued as exit of Pf 7 still continues to be a painful 10kmph. We had a parallel run with Gyaneshwari Express on 6th line. We also spotted the LHB SG coaches bound for Gorakhpur from LTT on 5th line between Kanjurmarg and Bhandup. As we were about to reach VVH, a WDM3D hauled Netravathi Express was making its way out of LTT on 5th line. A lot of rail personnel were working on connecting the freight lines to the new 5th-6th lines. Then between Sion & Dadar we had parallel run with incoming Jabalpur Garibrath, which had 15 3-Tier AC coaches with 78 seat configuration and 2 EOGs. We won the race as it was made to wait at Dadar outer.

As we were approaching Byculla, we saw Sahyadri Express negotiating a turnout from a loop line of Chinchpokli sidings to enter up fast UP line, which meant, it was put on the loop for an overtake. There were 2 AC pantry cars of Northern Railway, just behind the WCAM3 loco. One of the pantry cars was in the standard Yellow-Red Livery, whereas the other one had the Chalo-Kerala Livery. What was it doing here, is a question we will have to investigate. Maybe a replacement or spare for the LTT-Haridwar AC Superfast! As we got down at CSTM on Pf 5, we ran towards the Pf 7 to capture the twin AC pantry cars. There were a lot of RPF personnel waiting near the entrance of Pf7, so we had to point and shoot from a point near the ATM stalls. The Train Management System (TMS) was supposed to be inaugurated on 16th April, so there were a few rail officials making their way in and out of the new TMS building constructed on Pf 7.

I had to renew by Season ticket, so made by way to the ticket counter. Surprisingly, there was no line and I managed to buy the season ticket in 2 minutes. We ventured out and took a BEST BUS 138 to Churchgate. Got down at the EROS Cinema Signal, took the subway to reach the Main Concourse. That’s where we met Karthik Gopalan, Mohit Tandel and Sekharan Sir. The exhibition area wasn’t very big. There were 2 LCD screens at the entrance and 2 vertical sliders depicting the glorious years of Indian railways. The focus certainly was on BB & CI railways. Then, there were many old B & W pictures of WP and WG steam locos hauling passengers & freights. Bassein Bridge, Mahalaxmi Station, Mumbai Central, Bandra and Churchgate station pictures were also on display. Then the 6 car, 8 car , 12 car & finally 15 car rake pictures were on display. A replica of the Bandra Terminus & Churchgate with glass façade was on display.

The most important part of the exhibition was a model train loop with miniature working models of Plasser, Rajdhani , Duranto, etc along with a TGV France rake. It operated on 12 V DC current and landscaping included 2 platforms, a dual track tunnel, siding lines and two 180 deg curves. The kids watching the models were all gung-ho about the action on the miniature section. I did manage to capture a few videos and finally decided to call it a day. As I was doing an afternoon shift at office, took a cab and reached office, whereas Abhishek left for Dombivali.

In Pursuit Of Realization Of A Dream On A Hot Summer Day

Inauguration and Commissioning of the New 5th-6th Lines between Lokmanya Tilak Terminus(LTT) and Thane(TNA) was scheduled for 10th April 2011 and the Railfan in me ensured that I had timed my weekly off to be a witness to it. There 's hardly been a day in the past decade where I hadn't thought of this day when Central Railway(CR) finally segregates Mail/Express and Fast Local trains.

The megablock was initially announced for 3rd April 2011 which eventually got postponed to 10th April 2011 due to varied reasons like Vikhroli agitation for FOB, World Cup Security, modifications to correct the Loop line End Buffers.(Some true stories and some not so true stories). Anyways, on Friday, the 8th, traffic block was announced in all the leading newspapers for 10th April between 00:30 and 15:30 hrs. I coaxed my colleague in office to come to work so that I could take an Off and be witness to the inauguration. I decided to do an Afternoon shift in office based at CST Mumbai, so that while returning back from work, I could take a peek at the start of the traffic block at Vidyavihar(VVH) in the early morning hours.

Left office at 23:30, took a delayed running 23:40 Ambarnath Slow local which left at 23:50.I placed myself besides a window facing the east in a Kalyan End 1st Class Coach. We started crawling after Dadar. I could spot the Dadar-Sawantwadi Special waiting for departure on platform no 4. The crawl continued till Ghatkopar. As we approached Vidyavihar, I was glued to the window as the whole of India was on the 2nd of April to M S Dhoni's mesmerizing innings in the World Cup Final. As we halted at VVH, the last train out of LTT, the LTT-Hatia Express was negotiating the turnouts to enter the down fast lines at a sedate speed. The complete area was brightly lit up like a stadium with almost 300 railway personnel awaiting orders to commence work. I reached home by 01:15 and decided to hit the sack ASAP in anticipation of a eventful day ahead.

At 10:00 am, Vijay Aravamudhan, informed that Deep Soni was witnessing the presence of a lot of Media men at VVH and track work seemed to be in final stages. After a few consultations, we were informed that the first train out of LTT would certainly be Godan Express which was rescheduled for a 15:40 Departure. I decided to catch up with Vijay at TNA by 14:20 and then proceed to VVH. Accordingly left home at 13:20 and took a delayed 13:28 slow to CSTM from platform 3. At Kopar spotted the Push-Pull DMU hauled by a KYN WDM in the middle. The DMU and my MRVC AC-DC local had a short parallel run upto Diva. Eventually, we won as the DMU had to negotiate a few turnouts. I got down at Thane pf 4 at 14:00. I had another 20 minutes to spare, hence decided to venture to the island platforms 7 & 8 to see if anything was happening on the platform, which would soon see a lot of traffic. As I went down the stairs of the FOB, 13201 Rajendra Nagar -LTT express was languishing on Pf 8. I walked the length of the platform to see WCAM3 #21961 as its power. The presence of a lot of RPF personnel meant, I couldn't take snaps. In all probability, this would have been the first train to take the 6th New line to LTT. When I was at the Mulund end of the platform, a Vishakapatnam bound Express hauled by the offlink WDG4 12126 was coming to a dual halt on Pf 5 at Thane.It had started from Dadar today and given a special halt at Thane for the convenience of passengers.

There were repetitive announcement of Mangalore bound Matsyagandha Express being rescheduled to depart from Panvel. Passengers were urged to take a local to Panvel using their long distance tickets. There was also an announcement of Ratnagiri-Dadar passenger being short terminated at a Diva and rescheduled to depart for Ratnagiri from Diva. Vijay asked me to check the Speed Restrictions on the turnouts of Pf7,8 at the KYN end. Pf 7 had a 10 kmph exit and a 20 kmph entry. While pf 8 had a 30 kmph entry. This 10 kmph exit out of pf 7 has to be upgraded to 30 kmph to ensure a smooth exit from new lines into the down fast track ahead of thane to avoid bottleneck situations in future. In the meanwhile, Mahanagari Express bound for CSTM hauled by a WCAM3 # 21934 entered pf 7 and left after 5 minutes.

Finally met Vijay and we boarded the last coach of a CST bound MRVC AC-DC rake. After Mulund, we spotted as many as 4 empty rakes stabled with WCAM3's and WCAG1. In a split second decision, we decided to get down at Nahur and capture this rarity. We got down and ran towards the empty rakes in the Mulund yard as if there was no tomorrow. On display were 3 WCAM3's and 1WCAG1 with Haridwar-LTT, Holiday Spl, and 2 unknown expresses. After sufficing ourselves with the snaps we marched back to Nahur to catch the next CST bound DC EMU and finally got down at VVH at 15:00. We did spot the Sinhagad to Pune in between Ghatkopar and Vikhroli. Met with the Video-man of IRFCA, Arzan Kotwal. This was my first meeting with him and was equally pleased to meet Deep Soni, Sriram S and Tushar Dhake. The sun was blazing down with all its prowess. We saw a freight negotiating turnouts out of the VVH freight yard into the mainline, which meant, the goods trains will have to continue using the mainlines for now and only the mail/express trains bound for LTT would use the new lines. As it was very hot, Arzan and yours truly volunteered to backpack 6 bottles of mineral water for the gruesome afternoon ahead. After the freight train cleared the points, we went straight to the new lines. Deep and others explained that new lines will open shortly as there was an announcement over the Public Address System(PAS) to all railways personnel to clear the tracks. At 15:10, the same train which I had spotted at TNA , the 13201 Rajendra-nagar -LTT approached VVH on the 6th new lines, slowly and steadily. Coincidentally, we witnessed the Rajendra Nagar-CST Superfast doing a parallel run on the UP fast lines. What a moment!!
The Loco Pilot of Rajendra Nagar-LTT honked in all glory as the WCAM3 came to a halt near the new Section controlling cabin at VVH. After a short ceremony which included garlanding, coconut breaking and photo-ops with media-men, it slowly crawled up the 6th line into LTT. Next to follow was Coimbatore-LTT hauled by the majestic WDP4 #20031. This train waited at the outer for an eternity. Now we were all waiting with baited breath for the first train out of LTT on the new lines as it was scheduled to leave at 15:40. At 15:50 arrived the WCAM3 #21897 hauling Godan Express out of LTT.

Again the ceremony was repeated and we congratulated each other on the successful commisioning of the new lines. We were gulping down water every few minutes as the sun was very strong and dehyrdating us. We were also sweating profusely but nobody really cared.

The freight lines will have to be connected to the new lines in a few weeks from now, to free up the 3rd-4th line between TNA-CST of freights. At 16:00 we saw Sainagar-Shirdi passing on the Up fast lines. Sewagram Express to Nagpur also sped past us in full glory at VVH. Now we decided to catch up with some high speed action on the new lines. It was time to meet Rajendra Aklekkar at Bhandup. We went back to VVH pf 1 and took an EMU to Bhandup. The forced ventilation provided us with much needed respite from heat. As we were returning to Bhandup, a steady stream of Expresses and empty rakes started on the 6th Line. Empty rakes of Kushinagar Express, Haridwar-LTT AC S/F, followed by Shalimar and Hatia Express with a lot of commuters inside. This was followed by Samrasta Express from Howrah. Rajendra showed us a fantastic spot to catch high speed action. As the signal on the 5th line turned green we took over the vantage positions to capture the LTT- Darbhanga Express raising a dust storm as it went past us at a good speed.

Next on the agenda was Nandigram Express on the 3rd line, but we were pleasantly surprised to see a WCAM3 hauled Holiday Special blasting past us, prior to it. In the meanwhile Chappra-LTT hauled by yet another WCAM3 crawled and grind-ed to a halt on the 6th lines. As we were expecting the Udyog Nagari(Sultanpur) express on 5th line and our view being blocked, we decided to stand on the safer loop line between 6th and 5th line at Bhandup. Now with no more trains expected on the new lines we decided to meet Harshad Joshi and Abhishek Rishbud at Mulund yard. Again a first time for me. After alighting at Mulund pf 1 , we walked all the way towards the yard on the new lines with enough safety precautions. As we met them and exchanged pleasantries, Deccan Queen hauled by WCAM3 sped past us at 17:35. The new line again saw some action with Muzaffarpur-LTT special. An RPF warned us to stay away from the tracks, hence we went up the Apna Bazaar FOB and captured 06346 Netravathi Express from Trivandrum bound for LTT going at a relatively slow speed and coming to a halt further behind a Erode WDM3D 11110.

Abhishek dropped us at Mulund Station East in his new Maruti Alto, rechristened as WAG9C. He showed us a white label in his car with a Tagline ' MPS=80kmph', much to our amusement...so..like a railfan... We got down at Mulund pf 3 and took a Semifast to Kalyan. Thus bringing to an end to a wonderful day of railfanning. My long cherished dream of spotting the inuagural run was accomplished. Next on the agenda is 5th-6th lines between Diva and Thane. I hope, I don't have to wait for another decade to see that.

Thanks a lot for the patient reading.