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| fowler diesel (betty tramways, rajkot) | Item: Diesel Locomotive |
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| 40.1 The Betty Tramways diesel in an improbable maroon/light blue livery, as seen in Nov.1997. | 40.2 An earlier shot in 1981 shows the engine in an elegant pure white livery with navy blue and yellow trimmings. |
| VITALSTATISTICS: Builder: John Fowler & Co, Leeds, UK Class: None Year Built: Not known. Probably in the late 1930s. Service: Saurshtra Railway), Betty Tramways, Rajkot Wheel Arrangement: 0-B-0 Numbering: 390014 Named: ---- Rail Gauge: ng (2' 6") |
| Diesel traction got off to a very early start in the arid regions of Saurashtra in Gujarat, on account to a perennial water shortage, and the subsequent non-availability of suffient water supplies for steam locomotives. This duminutive diesel engine was one of the first to run in that area: indeed, one of the first diesels to run on Indian soil. She was retired in 1960. |
Item: Railcar |
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41.Business end of the Kalka-Simla railbus. Note swivelling headlight. |
| VITALSTATISTICS: Builder: Sir W.G. Armstrong Whitworth, UK Class: --- Year Built: 1933 Service: Kalka-Simla line on the NWR (North WesternRailway) (later NR: Northern Railway), Wheel Arrangement: Bogie stock Numbering: 14 Named: --- Unique Features: Dual brakes (mechanical and air). Rail Gauge: ng (2' 6" |
| This 15-seater railbus saw service on the Kalka-Simla line of the NR. The bus is dual braked, (mechanical and air brakes), which is commendable for a railway vehicle of her time. Like all other railcars on the Kalka-Simla line, this one too is fitted with a swivelling headlight, which turns along with the curvature of the track on the steeply graded hill line. |
| barsi light railway coach | item: Passenger Car |
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| 42.1 The capacity of this car is only marginally less than that of an m.g.car. | 42.2 A 1981 shot showing the original Barsi Light Railway writing on the car side. |
| VITALSTATISTICS: Builder: The Metropolitan Amalgamated Carriage & Wagon Works, UK Class: TLR Year Built: 1905 Service: BLR (Barsi Light Railway), (now under CR (Central Railway), Wheel Arrangement: Bogie stock Numbering: Originally 32, later changed to 250 Named: --- Rail Gauge: ng (2' 6") |
| The Barsi Light Railway was the brainchild of a brilliant British engineer Calthrop. Calthrop tried to prove that if the loading gauge were to kept large enough, the carrying capacity of the Indian 2' 6" narrow gauge will be only marginally smaller than similar cars on the metre gauge. He used the Barsi Light Railway as a experimenting ground for all his jumbo-capacity ideas. The car pictured above is from the Barsi Light Railway, and is a composite incorporating a passenger section, a luggage compartment and guard's cabin. In keeping with Calthrop's dream, the passenger section can seat a whooping 41 persons. Fitted with a balcony at one end, this car is fitted with sunshades on the passenger portion only. |
| HP | Item: Steam Locomotive |
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43.The Yankee HP hides behind bushes in the NRM grounds. (Nov. 1997).The engine is placed on a curve, so the tender disappears if one tries to photograph from the other side. |
| VITALSTATISTICS: Builder: Baldwin Loco Works, Philadelphia, USA Class: HP (non-standard) Year Built: 1948 Service: JR (Jodhpur Railway), later NR (Northern Railway), Wheel Arrangement: Pacific (4-6-2) Numbering: Initially 152, later changed to no.31412 Named: ---- Unique Features: Fitted with 12-wheel tender, tender weighs more than the engine itself, large firebox grate for burning inferior quality coal, largest stroke of any mg locomotive in India Rail Gauge: mg (3' 3 3/8") |
| The handsome HP is a BESA-design locomotive. built by Baldwin, USA. The engine has several unique features to her credit,probably the most striking being that this was the only locomotive class in India fitted with elongated 12-wheeled tenders, which enabled them to make prolonged runs without stops for coal or water in the arid Thar Desert of Rajasthan, notably in the Jodhpur area. Secondly, the engines also had a large firebox grate area (31 sq.ft.) which enabled them to burn inferior quality coal. The first lot of HP engines (built in 1925 and loosely referred to as old HP) had dimensions closer to the BESA designs, with 16"x22" cylinders and 4' 9" coupled wheels. This particular engine is one from a latter batch (1948) with smaller coupled wheels (4' 3"), and with 15.5"x26" cylinders. 26" was the biggest stroke for any mg Indian locomotive ever. The 12-wheeled tenders could carry 10 tonnes of coal and 7200 US gallons of water, and weighed 64.5 tonnes in working order, more than the locomotives themselves which had a weight of only 57.5 tonnes! The cost of purchase of these engines was Indian Rupees 86,460/- each, as per the NRM booklet, if this info is of any relevance. |
| RD | Item: Steam Locomotive |
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| 44.1 The large-ish RD in the NRM grounds in Nov.1997. | 44.2 The BNR logo fitted on the smokebox door of the RD. |
| VITALSTATISTICS: Builder: Nasmyth Wilson & Co. Manchester, UK Class: RD (non-standard) Year Built: 1929 Service: BNR (Bengal Nagpur Railway), later SER (South EasternRailway), Wheel Arrangement: 2-6-2 Numbering: Initially 08, later no. 688 Unique Features: Superheated, has 8-wheeled tender, a rare feature on ng locomoties. Named: ---- Rail Gauge: ng (2' 6") |
| In the good old days, several narrow gauge engines used to be classified on the basis of the route they served, classic examples being class MLR from the Matheran Light Railway, class AK of the Ahmedpur-Katwa line etc. Likewise, the RD class locomotive pictured here was used on the Raipur-Dhamtari line of the BNR (later SER). Their large-ish size premitted them to haul the tightly packed trains with ease. The RDs were fitted with Lentz valve gear, and were replaced by the larger CC class when freight traffic increased on the Raipur-Dhamtari line. Withdrawals commenced from 1974 and went on till 1977. The RD was superheated, and features a 8-wheeled bogie tender, a feature somewhat rare on ng locomotives. |
| sentinel (b.g.) | Item: Steam Locomotive | |
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| 45.1 A view if the Sentinel in the NRM grounds. | 45.2 An earlier 1981 shot of the Sentinel shows clearly the chain drive at the rear wheel. | 45.3 Rear end of the Sentinel. The cab is very comfortable, quite unlike other steam locos. |
| VITALSTATISTICS: Builder: Sentinel Wagon Works, Shrewsbury, UK Class: None Year Built: 1926 Service: PWD (Public Works Department), Punjab, later NR (Northern Railway), Wheel Arrangement: Chain drive, 4-wheeled. Numbering: 6273 Named: ---- Unique Features: Vertical boiler in a fully enclosed carbody, steam-driven high speed engine, chain driven wheels. Rail Gauge: bg (5' 6") |
We dwelt upon the unusual Sentinel class engines in some detail in # 27.(on the outdoor3 page). To refresh your memory: The 'Sentinels' were highly unusual engines in several respects. For one, they digress from the usual familiar 'steam locomotive' profile. Second, they incorporated a vertical boiler, housed in a fully enclosed carbody. Steam from the boiler in turn drove a high speed engine, which in turn transmitted power to the wheels through chains. The chain drive meant that speeds necessarily had to be low. The unusual Sentinel engines were very popular for light weight and slow speed traffic on secondary and branch lines, and also on construction sites. This particular Sentinel was used on the broad gauge, on canal schemes undertaken by the PWD Punjab, between 1926 and 1944. She later passed on the the NR, and was used as a works shunter at the Amritsar workshops. |
| garratt | Item: Steam Locomotive | |
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| 46.1 The sheer length of the Garratt can well be appreciated from this picture. | 46.2 Builder's plate on the undercarriage of the mighty Garratt. | 46.3 The silent monster rests peacefully in the NRM grounds in Nov. 1997. |
| VITALSTATISTICS: Builder: Beyer Peacock, Manchester, UK Class: N (non-standard) Year Built: 1930 Service: BNR (Bengal Nagpur Railway), Wheel Arrangement: 4-8-0 + 0-8-4 on an articulated frame Numbering: Originally 6594, later 815, finally altered to 38815 Named: ---- Rail Gauge: bg (5' 6") |
| A behemoth hulking over pygmy locomotives is this mighty Garratt engine, undisputedly the heaviest and most powerful steam locomotive class ever used on the IR. Weighing a massive 235 tonnes, this Garratt was used on the erstwhile BNR for heavy mineral and iron ore trains, a typical feature of that railway. The beast could easily haul a 2400 tonne train unaided up a 1 in 100 incline. Classed 'N', there were the only heavyweight Garratts in India with a 4-8-0 + 0-8-4 wheel arrangements. Subsequent additions to the fleet were lighter 2-8-2 + 2-8-2 machines, classed MN, P etc. One of these later light Garratts is preserved in the Kharagpur workshops. Paradoxically, the Garratts could run on lightly laid track, as their weight is spread out over a long wheelbase. |
| XT/1 | Item: Steam Locomotive |
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47.The XT/1 was rather neglected and pushed to a corner when I visited in Nov.1997, thanks to re-organization of the outdoor exhibits to make way for movement of the Fairy Queen. |
| VITALSTATISTICS: Builder: Freid Krupp of Berlin, Germany Class: XT/1 Year Built: 1935 Service: EIR (East Indian Railway), later ER (Eastern Railway) Wheel Arrangement: 0-4-2T Numbering: Originally 1538, later no.1789, finally altered to 36863 Named: ---- Rail Gauge: bg (5' 6") |
| The XT/1 was a typical IRS-era locomotive, introduced in 1929 for light passenger operations. She was used for this purpose on the EIR. Similar metre gauge versions of this locomotives were subsequently built by the Ajmer Workshops of the BB & CI Railway. |
Item: Steam Locomotive |
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| 48.1 Meet India's only 4-cylinder rack and pinion locomotive. | 48.2 A close-up of the formidable X's motion. |
| VITALSTATISTICS: Builder: Swiss Loco. Works, Winterthur, Switzerland Class: X (non-standard) (not to be confused with the IRS classification 'X' for the Indian bg) Year Built: 1920 Service: NMR (Nilgiri Mountain Railway), later SIR (South Indian Railway), and SR (Southern Railway) Wheel Arrangement: 0-8-2T Numbering: Originally 7, later modified to 37385 Named: ---- Unique features: 4-cylinder, rack and pinion locomotive. Rail Gauge: mg (3' 3 3/8") |
| The mg Xs (not to be confused with the IRS standard classification 'X' for the Indian bg) are remarkable engines in two respects: one, they have the ability to run on rack and pinion track. Second, they are India's only 4-cylinder machines, the additional cylinders being used for the rack wheel. (A rack and pinion system is where a toothed wheel on the underside of the railway vehicle engages into a toothed rail running between the two main rails. This gives the train more adhesion, or 'grip', especially while climbing steep inclines). The first Xs appeared in 1914, and subsequent additions were made right till 1952. Although the Ooty line has been partially dieselized, and age is taking a toll on these elderly machines due to which many have been withdrawn, several of the robust Xs are still hard at work (2000) on the Nilgiri Mountain line. One more X is preserved in Ooty. |
| MLR | Item: Steam Locomotive |
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| 49.1 A 1983 pic of the MLR in the NRM shows the engine in original CR livery. | 49.2 The MLR as seen in Nov.1997 with a modified livery. |
| VITALSTATISTICS: Builder: Oresntein & Koppel, Germany Class: MLR (non-standard) Year Built: 1907 Service: MLR (Matheran Light Railway), later CR (Central Railway) Wheel Arrangement: 0-6-0T Numbering: Originally 2342, later changed to 739 Named: ---- Unique features: Fitted with articlated axles. Rail Gauge: ng (2' 0") |
| The diminutive German-built MLRs were sturdy to the extreme, and were used on the Neral-Matheran line for well over 73 years. They were probably the only class of locomotives in India to be fitted with articulated axles (as opposed to the articulated frame of the Garratts). The articulated axles enabled the engines to round sharp curves on the steeply graded hill line. Of course, articulation notwithstanding, the absence of leading guiding axles meant that derailments were quite common. This is the only MLR still with the original firebox: all other members of her class have had the firebox re-built. One more MLR is preserved at the hilltop Matheran station. One set of articulated axles is also preserved at the NRM, and is placed close to the MLR's location. (not photographed when I visited in Nov.1997). |
| BKS/ET (bikaner railway coach) | item: Passenger Car |
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50.It is hard to believe that this diminutive 4-wheeler is actually a mg car! |
| VITALSTATISTICS: Builder: Bikaner Workshops of the Bikaner State Railway Class: BKS (also referred to as ET) Year Built: 1902 Service: BSR (Bikaner State Railway), Wheel Arrangement: 4-wheeler Numbering: Initially 45, later modified to 1445 Named: --- Rail Gauge: mg (3' 3 3/8") |
| It is hard to believe that this diminutive 4-wheeler is actually a mg car. The BKS was one of the earliest wooden bodied third class passenger cars of the erstwhile Bikaner State Railway. The car has a seating capacity for 30 passengers, and is fitted with sunshades. |
item: Passenger Cars |
51-52.1 |
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| 1.VITALSTATISTICS: Builder: Not known Class: IRS (non standard) Year Built: Not known Service: Initially DHR (Darjeeling Himalayan Railway), moved to MLR (Matheran Light Railway), later CR (Central Railway), Wheel Arrangement: 4-wheeler Numbering: 812 Named: --- Rail Gauge: ng (2' 0") | 1. (51.1) This is a four wheeler, wooden bodied first-class car, with seating for 8 passengers. The car was initially used on the Darjeeling Himalayan Railway. There is no toilet in this car. |
| 2.VITALSTATISTICS: Builder: Not known Class: ES (non standard) Year Built: Not known Service: Initially MLR (Matheran Light Railway), later CR (Central Railway), Wheel Arrangement: 4-wheeler Numbering: 852 Named: --- Rail Gauge: ng (2' 0") | 2. (52.1) This is a four wheeler, wooden bodied third-class car, with seating for 12 passengers. There is no toilet in this car. Although the stock on the Matheran line uses conventional vacuum brakes, this particular car is also provided with hand brakes, operated from the outside. |
| darjeeling himalayan railway coach | Item: Passenger Car |
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53. An equally tiny car from the Darjeeling-Himalayan line. |
| VITALSTATISTICS: Builder: Tindharia Workshops of the DHR Class: ET (non standard) Year Built: 1902 Service: DHR (Darjeeling Himalayan Railway), later NFR (North East Frontier Railway), Wheel Arrangement: 4-wheeler Numbering: 119 Named: --- Rail Gauge: ng (2' 0" |
| This is a four-wheeler third class car used on the DHR (later NFR), built in-house at the DHR's Tindharia Workshops, at the cost of an unbelievable 1,907/- Indian Rupees! The car could seat 16 passengers, and was used for about 66 years, between 1902 and 1968. |
Item: Steam Locomotive |
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| 54.1 Affectionately dubbed as a dachshund with a rucksack, this hardy 'B' enjoys a well deserved retired life in the NRM grounds. | 54.1 Number and builder's plate on the B's cabside. |
| VITALSTATISTICS: Builder: Sharp, Stewart & Co. Atlas Works, Glasgow UK, re-built at the DHR's Tindharia's Works Class: B (non-standard) Year Built: 1889, re-built 1917 at the DHR's Tindharia Workshops Service: DHR (Darjeeling Himalayan Railway), later NFR (North East Frontier Railway) Wheel Arrangement: 0-4-0SWT (saddle as well as well tank), Numbering: Originally 3517, later B-2, later altered to B-777 Named: --- Rail Gauge: ng (2' 0") |
| This is one of the sturdiest and most beautiful class of locomotives ever built, and is used on the steeply graded DHR. Four prototypes were built by Sharp Stewart of the UK in 1889, and after successful trials, 30 more were ordered. It is indeed a tribute to the company that most of these engines are STILL IN SERVICE, (2000), some of them over a hundred years old! The DHR achieved World Heritage Status in Dec. 1999, and may well remain the only railway in India still under steam operation, thanks to the sturdy Bs. 777 pictured here was one of the four 1889-built prototypes,and was in service till about 1952. One more B # 792 is preserved in Delhi, outside the IR headquarters building 'Rail Bhavan'. At least one B (# 778) is known to be working on a preserved line in the USA. In addition, a preserved line in the UK runs a 3/4 scale model of a B (with a tender added) on 15" gauge track. |
| matheran railcar | Item: Railcar |
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| 55.1 Note the unusual wheel arrangement: a bogie at the front end,and single axle at the rear. | 55.2 Another view of the Matheran railcar. |
| VITALSTATISTICS: Builder: Grashame (country of origin unknown) Class: --- Year Built: 1932 Service: Neral-Matheran line on the MLR (Matheran Light Railway) (later CR: Central Railway), Wheel Arrangement: 4-wheel bogie at front end, single axle at the rear Numbering: 899 Named: --- Unique Features: Unusual wheel arrangement (see above), chain drive, wooden body. Rail Gauge: ng (2' 0") |
| This extremely lightweight (1.5 tonnes) railcar was used on the Neral-Matheran line on the CR. Power to the wheels is transmitted by a chain, and the wheel arrangement is rather peculiar.(see 50.1 above). With a wooden body and a fuel tank capacity of 10 gallons, the car could seat 12 passengers. Like all other cars-on-rails, this one is provided with a hand brake as well. Although there is one more similar railcar still in existence on the Neral-Matheran line (2000), she is used by inspecting officials only,and does not run a regular service. |
| hasang | Item: Steam Locomotive |
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| 56.1 Slightly larger than a scooter rickshaw is the tiny Hasang. I shot this pic in1983. | 56.2 This close shot of the Hasang in Nov. 1997 makes the engine look several times larger than she actually is! |
| VITALSTATISTICS: Builder: W.G.Bagnall, Stafford, UK Class: A (non-standard) Year Built: 1897 Service: Ledo Coal Mines, Assam Wheel Arrangement: Originally 0-4-2ST, later re-built as 0-4-0ST Numbering: Originally 1508, later 885 Named: HASANG Rail Gauge: ng (2' 0") |
| Probably the lightest steam locomotive used on the Indian subcontinent, (a distinction matched only by the CS, (ref. # 29 in the outdoor3 page ), Hasang was used as a works shunter in the Ledo Coal Mines in Assam. The engine was initially built as a 0-4-2ST, but the trailing axle was later removed. The engine was donated to the NRM by the public sector Coal India Ltd. |
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| HOME | LOCATION MAP AND GENERAL INFO | HYPERLINKED LIST OF OUTDOOR EXHIBITS | INDOOR GALLERIES |
| OUTDOOR EXHIBITS | FAIRY QUEEN | SOUVENIR COUNTER | NRM:HISTORY & ORIGINS |
| CREDITS | LINKS |