A railfanning trip for me after ages. That too with Steven Logan, who is an off-and-on
member of IRFCA. He has been in Calcutta past couple of days and I was trying to work out something different.
And I thought… Why not one of the nearby narrow gauge lines. So we decided on the Barddhaman-Katwa NG section,
something I hadn't experienced myself.
Katwa is a district town north of Bandel. It has two narrow gauge lines, one to Barddhaman and one to Ahmadpur
(both 2'6" gauge). It makes for a rather complicated trip, due to the non-availability of very suitable connections.
More on that as the story progresses. Add to that it had been pretty hot here, and it would have made for a miserable
trip, but for the timely intervention in the form of a small storm and accompanying rain the night before. Definitely
made things cooler.
Steve and I met at Howrah station at 9. We had a quick snack at the Comesum food plaza (the food being good as
usual; Steve was impressed with his chola bhatura)... and then we set off to find the train timings and see if
services were running. From an older timetable I had earlier ascertained that the only feasible service was the
one leaving Katwa at 1550. The rest were either too early or too late. We headed off to the enquiry counter to
find out that the staff there didn't have a clue, so we tripped in to the Assistant Station Manager's office and
a helpful gentleman there called up the enquiry counter and 'ordered' them to help us. This time was better. We
were made to sit down and the lady actually went through the timetables and we found there was indeed a train at
15.50. She advised us to catch the Bandel local leaving shortly and change to a Bandel-Katwa shuttle at Katwa.
We left for Bandel at 10.30 or so. ). Spotted a WAP7 at Howrah shed when on our way out... wonder for which train.
Hadn't spotted any P-5s then. We took just over an hour to get to Bandel. Mercifully we got seats, though not by
the window.
Reached Bandel and boarded the waiting Bandel - Katwa EMU. Total Howrah - Katwa distance is about 132 kms. To our
dismay, we found (after boarding the local) that since it was a Sunday it would only go up to Nabadwip Dham. The
next local on the route would be the one from Howrah, which was scheduled to reach Katwa at 1545, cutting things
way too find even considering it would reach on time. We didn't want to give up after all that trouble. The day
had started good so we thought we would have luck. So we stuck on and traveled upto Nabadwip Dham. We stood all
the way at the door, Steve's favourite spot. The journey was itself uneventful. The weather better was remarkable
decent. Lush green fields added to the positive mood. The rush abated as he headed northwards. Got into Nabadwip
Dham and we stepped out of the station to try finding alternate transport to Katwa. Asking around got us conflicting
responses, as is wont here. Some said there are regular buses or there might be auto rickshaws. We asked a private
car and the driver asked for 450 Rupees, not worth it. We waited for a bus, of which none came. Finally we took
a rickshaw to a spot on the highway where buses stop. Luckily there was a Katwa bound bus waiting. We wondered
whether to board since there was no place to sit. I thought we may as well take the next one but eventually didn't
chance it and boarded. Lucky for us as I heard the next one was much later. The one-hour bus journey wasn't too
bad. The road, though narrow had decent surface and almost no traffic. We made good time, except for the numerous
stops to pick and drop off passengers. As is usual, a passenger spent about 20 minutes arguing with the conductor
who he felt was overcharging him for all the sacks he was carrying. The conductor's helper was a rather athletic
character, he would always hop on after the bus started, and one time he was high up on the roof loading baggage
and the bus started, and I was right next to the door (which was closed), and I was quite surprised to find him
slide in through the window on the door.
Got into Katwa at about 1510 as promised by the conductor. Had a quick soft drink and headed to the station. We
were greeted at the door by the turntable. We went to look for tickets. The booking clerk weren't issuing tickets
yet since the engine hadn't come into the platform. We decided to explore. There were three lines at the station,
but no raised platforms. There was a small NG rake with Katwa - Ahmadpur markings on it. Next to it was a small
(and extremely unsightly) two coach railbus. Couldn't make out where the engine was. People were already seated
inside both these trains. We asked at the Station Master's office for permission to take photographs and they readily
agreed. After taking a few pictures, we were waiting for the loco to turn up, I saw one ZDM5 come in and latch
itself to the Ahmedpur passenger. I thought I spotted a steam loco in the nearby shed and started walking towards
it, but saw another loco heading out and knew that was for us so we ran back towards the booking office.
This engine was pulling its own rake from the shed itself. It reached the station, and the engine detached from
the rake, moved to the next line (where the railbus was parked), moved it aside and then came latched itself to
the front of the train. I found the entire manouvre rather amusing. We watched the coupling. What I found very
interesting was that each coach/loco had a centre coupler in the form of a protrusion with a slot on it. The loco
carried a U shaped cast metal part that bound the two slots together. Pretty crude but it works! We walked up to
the driver asking permission to footplate but he wasn't very forthcoming saying there was station staff about and
he would show us the engine later. We persisted and he said it was extremely hot inside. We insisted we really
didn't care about the heat and had traveled all the way to Katwa to ride the train. He finally gave in and said
to go over at a later station. We got into the front coach of the 3-car rake. It was full and dirty as usual. Our
coach had one working light with spiders spinning a merry web around it. Steve managed to sit by the door and for
the time I stood. In the meantime an EMU stooped at the adjacent broad gauge station. It was the local from Howrah,
which we had not traveled on assuming we'd miss the NG train. It was almost on time, but our train was late.
Our train started behind schedule (at about 4.10); simultaneously the Katwa - Ahmadpur passenger started too. We
ran parallel for a short distance (common enough on BG busy sections but I would guess a rarity on a low frequency
NG line), till the other line veered away towards Ahmadpur. Soon we were in the open fields, chugging along in
a gentle sway. The ride wasn't very bumpy at all. We patiently waited for two stations to pass and then made our
way to the loco. The driver let us in and we stood in the middle, with the driver and his assistant flanking us.
W traveled almost half way to Barddhaman on the loco. The assistant was friendly. He said there were three ZDM5s
(all CLW built) on the line, in addition to one railcar. He even mentioned something about the locos being transferred
from the Bankura - Damodar line (or maybe the steam loco was, I'm not sure). I asked him about the steam loco looking
fresh and he a senior officer had ordered for it to be kept well... rather interesting.
The ZDM5 was tiny and the view ahead not particularly great but at least there was no short hood. It had a tiny
bonnet. Noticed the engine rocked quite a bit more than the coaches. The line I was told has a max speed of 28
km/h (as was painted on the rake, though the working timetable shows the maximum permissible speed to be 30 km/h).
The loco had a digital speedometer (which surprised me) and it showed that we were doing 32 km/h much of the time.
One slight and short uphill gradient we had laboured over, but beyond that running was smooth. What was also rather
interesting was the line had continuous welded rails... except one small stretch, which the assistant driver indicated,
that had the original British made tracks and therefore had a further speed restriction imposed.
We were also told many of the stations have been converted to contractor operated halts, therefore signaling at
those was non-functional and the loop lines were unused. The contractors, according to him, were paid Rs 400 a
month, in addition to 10% of ticket sales. The other stations had signaling and working loop lines (there are about
5 pairs of services a day (4 on Sundays), and the 53 km route takes almost 3.5 hours to cover. There is no interlocking,
and no tokens... a paper line ticket is the authority for the driver to proceed. Another interesting fact was there
was walkie talkie communication between driver and guard, and also with stations within range, something I didn't
expect in a place so remote. And remote it is. The area is sparsely populated. Almost no trace of cellphone coverage
along the route at all. These tiny trains don't carry many and I suppose most prefer the bus, as it is faster.
But bus conductors force every passenger to pay up, so here is where this line shines. Not a hint of a ticket checker
anywhere!!!
The train trundled along. The ride quality wasn't bad but the coach was. Steve was again by the door, his feet
hanging out. We watched the sights. At most of the stations very few people got in and out. The stations themselves
were more or less a tiny room along the tracks. As I said earlier, most had been converted to contracted halts.
A couple of larger stations had proper buildings and snack stalls. The train wasn't very crowded at all. Most got
a place to sit. Sundays I believe aren't so bad. The people around were pleasant and very polite. Steve said sitting
at the door he got a feel of the 'real India', and was happy he took this trip. It was getting dark and I was keeping
an eye on the spiders (I detest those creatures) and even dozed off for a few minutes. And the train trundled on.
I had earlier asked the driver and he said his duty would be over after he got the train back to Katwa from Barddhaman,
which would mean a complete journey in darkness, which I assume wouldn't be very easy on this section. I had even
asked him about accidents. He mentioned that about 10 years ago, a very severe storm had turned a stationery train
turtle, killing several railway employees. And of course, the doors in the carriages had the telltale warning to
passengers to keep doors and windows open during a severe storm to prevent capsizing.
I found out from a co-passenger that we would miss the 7.30 chord line local from Barddhaman to Howrah and the
next train was at 8.30. We got to Barddhaman at about 7.45. Was very very tired by then. Bought mail/express tickets
to Howrah as we were told the black diamond express was approaching and it came in at 7.15 behind a WAP4 (sorry
was too tired to note down numbers, but as far as I recall, it was 225.. something. The Black Diamond was crowded
(I was told it usually is on Sunday evenings) and we stood at the door. Was an uneventful trip to Howrah where
we reached at before 9.10 (a few minutes before schedule). The run was good and at even speed most of the time,
in spite of scheduled halts at Bandel and Seoraphuli (which surprised me as I thought the train had a direct Barddhaman
- Howrah run). We hopped onto a cab and headed out for a peaceful dinner before getting home just before midnight
(it being a Sunday we had to wait half an hour to get a seat).
Steve and I really enjoyed the trip. As I mentioned, it was tiring, having covered about 300 kilometres on a single
day, and part of it on narrow gauge. It was a unique experience for either of us. Enjoyed the many smokes throughout
the journey, as is usual on such trips. On most of the trains it wasn't really a problem, though we were discreet
about it. I was happy to have footplated after ages. And it was Steve's first foot plating experience. |
|
|
|
|
A blast from the past. A Bagnall built 0-6-4 which used to run on the
Barddhaman - Katwa Line, now rests plinthed at Sealdah Station.
|
|
The turntable greets us at the entrance to the station
|
|
Engineless rake of the Katwa-Ahmadpur Passenger at Katwa Station
|
|
The eyesore of a Railbus. Looks worse than conventional buses
|
|
The coupling between two coaches. You can vaguely
see the outline of the U shaped metal link.
|
|
A Katwa homed CLW built ZDM5 shunting at Katwa station.
|
|
One of the important stations along the line.
|
|
Saota station, now contractor operated halts. This is all what remains of
the station building. A man sells tickets inside it.
|
|
View of the track ahead from the loco in motion.
|
.
|
