RAILWAY SAMACHAR

To CNB convention by the

Pushpak: trip report

Here is the trip report of the journey to CNB convention by the pushpak
express. The report is quite long, at around 3690 words, so read at your own
peril ;-) After the report, I have included the average speeds between
stations. Here goes the report:

Date: 8th February 2008. Time: 5.40 am. I was very excited as I was about to
set out to attend my first ever IRFCA convention! This also would be my
first major railfanning trip after getting my new camera. All the packing
had been done on the previous day. Me and dad started from home towards
Borivali station in our car. On the way, we picked up Sandeep and Amruta
Bhate. We were at BVI in 5 minutes. I quickly purchased three tickets for
CST via Mahim from the ATVM, and we proceeded to platform 1, where the 6.00
Churchgate slow was waiting. We stood in the door itself as we had to alight
at ADH. The train filled up considerably till ADH. We just managed to get
off with all the baggage. We three had decided to take the harbour line to
CST instead of the normal BVI - DDR - DR-CST route. The EMU deposited us on
platform 3 at ADH. We then started the long walk towards platform 7 where
our harbour EMU, scheduled to leave at 6.45 was about to arrive.

The EMU was empty and we got window seats. We departed on schedule. The run
was slow, never exceeding 55-60 kph. After Khar, we crossed the "flyover"
above the WR mainlines. The train got fairly full by Wadala. In the
meantime, the sun had started rising. It was a beautiful sight to see the
early morning orange sun with a foreground of the various cranes and other
equipment of the port. What a wonderful start for the day!

At Sandhrust road, a WDP-4 was spotted going light towards Dadar. After the
numerous twists, turns, gradients & bridges of the harbour line were
negotiated, we finally reached CST on time at around 7.30. I immediately
called Karan to find out where he was. He was already on platform 17, the
platform from where our train would depart. I then enquired about the
position of Abhishek Risbud and Sagar Tipnis who were on the way from
Thane/Mulund. They had not reached the station yet. So we decided to wait
for them. They soon arrived in a 3xx EMU along with Nitin Master.

We then proceeded to platform 17. Karan met us there. A WDS-6 had already
shunted in the rake of our Pushpak express. We parted ways with Sandeep and
Amruta, who were in a Sleeper coach. Our coach B-1 was approximately 7th
from the loco. It was a brand new coach with brown interiors, 07109,
manufactured by RCF Kapurthala in December 2007. We had 4 seats in a bay
adjacent to the doorway. The fifth occupant was an elderly scientist, who
was eager to have the upper berth! He slept on the berth for most of the
day, leaving the entire bay for us. We kept our luggage in the coach and
went to the loco. The loco was already coupled to the rake. It was WCAM-3
#21883. We took a couple of photos and waited there for the departure of
udyan. It left on time with its customary WDP-4.

We then returned to our coach. Nitin Master, Ajit Rao & Shantanu Kulkarni
were reserved in the adjacent coach, B-2. Departure was bang on time at
8.20. Dr Mulky & family were in A-1. After clearing the points, we started
accelerating slowly.

The acceleration was pretty slow and we were doing moderate speeds right
upto Kurla. Dadar was crossed at 60-65 kph. After Kurla we picked up speed
slightly. The side berths of our bay too were unoccupied at the moment. So
Sagar & Abhishek settled in the side berths (seats) & Me and Karan took the
bay seats. In all we were 5 people in the bay. In the meantime, we had tea
and placed orders for breakfast. The attendant distributed bedsheets,
blankets, etc. The pillows were a tad too small. Napkins, bedsheets were
given packaged in a paper envelope while pillows and blankets were supplied
separately.

At Kopar we spotted a container rake going towards BSR hauled by a VSKP
WAG-7 #27884. We reached KYN at 9.17, delayed by 7 minutes. On the platform
Adjacent to our track, CR's brand new MRVC rake was stabled. It was CR's
first rake and was undergoing trials. We departed at 9.25. Simultaneously,
Udyan express departed towards Pune from another platform. It accelerated
and went ahead of us as we were still negotiating points. Shantanu Kulkarni
joined us at KYN. Soon, Ajit Rao, Nitin Master and Shantanu came to our
coach from B-2. We were having a very nice time in the train with seven
railfans together in a bay!

At Asangaon we were routed through the loop line. Breakfast was served
somewhere before Kasara. The cutlets were really really tasty. I happily
savoured the cutlets. We kept on speeding through the countryside, to reach
Kasara at 10.25. A KYN WAG-5 duo was idling away on one of the platforms,
waiting for its next assignment. Within a few minutes, the AWB - CSTM
Janshatabdi arrived on the adjoining platform, headed by a Kalyan WDG-3A. It
left instantly.

We left Kasara at 10.35. A quick look at the rear of our train revealed that
we had got triple tigerface WAG-7 bankers. I went to the door along with a
few others to enjoy the breathtaking views from the ghat. We made steady
progress through the ghats. The train passed over the famous Ehgaon viaduct.
The ghats were negotiated quickly. On the outskirts of Igatpuri, The MMR -
LTT Godavari express crossed us headed by the usual WCAM-3.

We reached IGP at 11.01. In one of the sidings, triple KYN WAG-7s were
waiting. This was a new spotting! We all alighted from the train and went to
the front to witness the loco change. There was excitement as to which loco
will take charge of our train for the next leg, as most of the WAP-4s from
JHS, which handled the link for this train, were transferred to other sheds
a few weeks ago. The WCAM-3 was detached - anticipation reached the peak
now. We spotted a red loco with a cream band coming towards the train. So it
was definitely a WAP-4. As the loco came nearer, the shed name became
visible. It was WAP-4 #22362 from BSL. It was transferred from JHS very
recently. The sides of the loco were so unclean that it seemed as if someone
had sprayed muck and grime on the loco with a pipe. JHS had not cleaned the
loco for months! The front face was relatively cleaner. After clicking
photos of the loco, we returned to our coach.

I was eagerly looking forward to the next leg of the journey as this would
be my first journey behind WAP-4. I did travel by AK Rajdhani once in 2001,
but at that time my knowledge about locos was nearly zero. Hence there is no
way to know which loco had hauled the train.

The loco change was executed really quickly. We departed IGP at 11.13, in
just 12 minutes! The WAP-4 impressed instantly by the way it the train
started from rest. It was as smooth as silk. No one would have noticed that
the train had started if the person was not alert. The trip shed had a wide
range of locos from all over the country. WAM-4, WAP-1, WAP-4 everything was
there from sheds like BSL, GZB, ET, SRC etc! After clearing the yard, we
quickly picked speed. The acceleretion of the WAP-4 was amazing. After IGP,
the TTE Allotted the side berths of our bay to two people, so we had only
the bay seats left for us. So we sat SMB style, with four people on each
side.

We were maintaining a steady pace in the range of 100-110 kph except the odd
slowdown for SRs. It was fun to see the other track split away from our
track and then join the same alignmnent many times. We reached Nasik Road at
11.52, delayed by 4 minutes. We departed soon after a brief halt of 3
minutes. Within no time, we picked up speed. Thr run was fabulous, with no
unscheduled stops. At 12.45 we overtook LTT - GHY express at an unknown
station. It was headed by ET WAM-4 # 20588.

Lunch was served just before MMR. It consisted of two chapatis, a vegetable
(the same standard vegetable that goes by various names!), dal, rice, curd,
pickle and Gulab jamun. The quality of gulabjamun was good & the rest was
just above average. Abhishek & Sagar had opted for some dish of chicken. A
very interesting thing was that the catering staff was shouting "Rasgullla"
while they were selling the gulabjamuns. No amount of explaining them that
these are two different dishes did any good. They kept on shouting
"Rasgulla" throughout the journey!

When the train rolled into MMR, we were still having our lunch. A couple of
members boarded at MMR. We left MMR soon, delayed by 11 minutes. Passing
time was not a problem when there were around 8 railfans together. There was
an abundance of topics to discuss! The topics involved buses too as there
were three bus fans - me, Abhishek & Sagar.

Some time in the noon, me and Karan decided to go to Sandeep & Amruta's
coach which was around 7 coaches away from our coach. Going to that coach
involved crossing the pantry, which is a tough job with all the smells and
the heat. Finally we reached their coach. Our train made an unscheduled halt
at Pachora Jn. On getting the green, we gained speed swiftly. After spending
some time with them, we started the long walk back to our coach.

The run from MMR onwards was slightly bad, with a couple of stops. As a
result, we reached BSL 20 minutes late, at 15.20. Me and Karan were
doorplating before BSL. At BSL outer, our train crossed the 2108 Lucknow -
LTT superfast. It was headed by BSL WAM-4 #20658. There was a WAG-9 hauled
BOXN rake too in one of the sidings at the station. We alighted from the
train at BSL and had a short stroll on the platform. A derated WDM-2 was
shunting in the rake of some passenger into a terminating platform.

We departed at 15.36. I stayed at the door itself. The trip shed had a GZB
WAP-4, two BSL-WAP-4s (one in WAP-4 livery and one in Rajdhani livery) & a
couple of BSL WAM-4s. In the freight yard, a BOXN rake was waiting on a
siding close to the mainline, headed by a single G-7. Slightly away from the
mainline, a BOXN rake headed by twin WAG-7s was waiting. I returned to the
coach after the NGP line separated from the Khandwa line on which we were
going.

Khandwa was a good two hours away. We resumed our chatting and joking!
Sandeep too joined us in our coach for some time. Now we had a slight
problem. We were falling short of seats. Not a major one though. Five
persons sat on one of the seats! I hope the ministry does not read this. If
they do, they might propose another berth at some god forsaken place (how
about hanging from the roof in between the two UBs?) and ask the extra
person to sit on one of the bay seats in addition to SMB (which is now
supposed to be removed)!

We had established a good rapport with the IRCTC attendant of our coach. We
persuaded him to bring us "special" tea. He did fulfill our request. We were
served tea & coffee in proper crockery instead of the paper cups!

In the meantime our train made an unscheduled halt at some place called
Asirgadh. We immediately went to the door to investigate. It turned out to
be a normal halt as the block was not clear. We started from there in a few
minutes. Some of the members were carrying Samit's Atlas. On referring to
the atlas, we found out that there is supposedly a ghat section near
Nepanagar. The length of the ghat was three stations (two blocks).
Immediately me and Karan decided to be at the door in the section.

We went to the door expecting some good ghat, but it turned out to be a damp
squib. It was nothing but a slight up gradient. The WAP-4 easily hauled the
24 coach train up the gradient at speeds around 90-100 kph. At the station
in the ghat, we overtook a freighter. Perhaps that freighter was the reason
for our unscheduled halt at Asirgadh. Except the halt at Asirgadh, the run
upto Khandwa was fabulous. We were at KNW outer at 17.05 itself - way ahead
of schedule.

After a brief halt at KNW outer, we pulled into the station at 17.12, 8
minutes before time. This gave us ample chance to explore the station. We
had a small debate in the coach as to whether the crew that took charge of
the train at BSL will change at KNW or not. We went to the loco where we got
the confirmation that the same crew will carry on till BPL. In the MG
section of the station, there was a solitary caboose parked on one of the
lines. Giving company to the caboose was Mhow YDM-4 #6293. An Itarsi barbie
doll WAG-5 was roaming around in the BG section. We purchased some kachoris
on the platform and returned to the coach.

Departure from Khandwa was delayed by five minutes. We departed at 17.30.
The next halt was Habibganj, approximately 4 hours away. Soon after
departure, we gobbled up the kachoris and some more snacks which I had
brought from home. The light had started fading now. We continued speeding
through the Mdahya Pradesh. The atlas was continuously being referred to,
and from that we came to know about the diversion in the alignment of the
tracks for some distance due to Narmada dam. The newly constructed section
has high level platforms at almost all stations.

Soon, the coach attendant came to take orders for dinner. For some variety,
we decided to try out what they called "Veg Biryani". One biryani would be
shared between two persons. The attendant informed that dinner would be
served before Habibganj. By now, armed guards had started making the rounds
of the train. By 6.30, the light had faded completely. Nothing was visible
outside the train.

The quick run continued and we were at Itarsi at 7.35. We halted on a non
platform line for three minutes. Just ahead of the station we halted again.
The sharp curve after Itarsi towards Bhopal is amazing. We could see the
entire 24 coach rake on the curve. Our train had come to a halt on the
curve. While we had halted, a WAP-4 hauled train entered Itarsi from Bhopal
end. We started moving after about 5-6 minutes. The LPs wasted no time in
getting to mps. We soon returned to our seats from the door.

The train continued blasting ahead through the darkness. Budni station again
saw us at the door in spite of the cold to experience the famed ghat
section. The train slowed down. The sight outside was surreal.. Headlamps of
the WAP-4 lighting up the tracks ahead , silhouttes of tall mountains on one
side, LED signals shining brightly through the darkness and thousands of
tiny stars twinkilng up in the sky! It felt like paradise. The line towards
BPL on which we were, is the more interesting one, with the loop and a
tunnel. Due to the darkness we did not realise when we negotiated the loop.
But one thing was sure. The track had a hell lot of sharp curves! The loco
and rear SLR were playing hide and seek with us, intermittently disappearing
behind rock cuttings. I was fully enjoying it at the door. Our train looked
like a snake crawling through the mountains. Meanwhile, another unknown
train crossed us on the other line some distance away.

Finally, after the ghat was over, we returned to our coach. It was an
experience of a lifetime. Dara pass & this ghat are a must experience for
any railfan. I am fortunate enough to have experienced Dara pass in broad
daylight. Karan was the "bakra" for the day. We all had told him to get up
at JHS in the middle of the night and see the loco change. He was told many
more tasks to do at the JHS halt! We continuously taunted him about Jhansi.

Just before HBJ, we were put into the loop. We sensed that this is the
overtake by SBC Rajdhani. Just then, dinner was served. The dinner could
wait. I went to the door to see the overtake. We were shooed away by RPF. A
few people decided to go elsewhere in search of a peaceful place, but I
decided to have dinner instead. The "Veg Biryani" turned out to be nothing
but normal khichadi. There was no sign of any vegetables in it. We somehow
finished it and I turned to the food which I had brought from home.
Gulabjamuns (rasgullas as per the catering guys!) were good like in lunch.
The Rajdhani blasted past with a WAP-4 in charge. We were soon on our way.

As expected, arrival at Habibganj was 25 minutes late, mainly due to the
unscheduled halts near Itarsi and the overtake. We left HBJ in a couple of
minutes. The run from BPL to HBJ was painfully slow. BPL was a long halt. We
reached BPL at 21.58. We had a short walk on the platform. It was cold out
of the coach. We soon retreated into the coach. We departed from Bhopal at
22.14, delayed by 19 minutes. All of us hit the sack soon after BPL. What
followed was a run I would never ever forget in my life. The LP was very
very aggressive. We used to touch mps within no time! The run to Lalitpur
was fairly uninterrupted, with just two unscheduled halts - one at Bina and
one at an unknown location. The start from these two halts was awesome.
22362 was showing its true colours under the aggressive LP. The acceleration
to mps from the unscheduled halt was surprisingly quick. The loco was
literally toying with the rake. We were doing mps at all times. As a result
of this wonderful run, we reached Lalitpur a full 10 minutes before time.
The time taken to cover the BPL - Lalitpur section was a whopping 30 minutes
less than the time allotted in the TT! The average speed, not surprisingly,
was 88.93 kph :)

After Lalitpur, I dozed off for some time. But I could sense that the
fabulous run was continuing. I was aroused from my light sleep as the train
had slowed down. We had stopped in a loop once again for an overtake. This
was about 20-25 minutes before Jhansi. There was no way to determine which
train overtook us. As a result of this overtake, we lost time. Arrival at
JHS was 20 minutes late, at 2.15. After the loco change formalities, we
departed at 2.40, now delayed by 15 minutes.

We were now in single line territory. Immediately after JHS, we were put
into the loop once again for a crossing. I remember being in the loop line
for crossing at least 3-4 times. One of the crossing trains was a BCNA rake
hauled by twin diesels. Our single diesel was finding it difficult to gain
speed with the 24 coach rake. It was a far cry from the WAP-4. I dozed off
intermittently in between crossings. But they were short naps only, not
peaceful sleep.

I finally woke up at 5 am. We soon arrived at Orai. We were late by
approximately 45 minutes now. After finishing the morning chores I headed
to the door again. It was too cold. Nevertheless, I stayed there for some
time, listening to the chugging of the WDM at the head of the train. The
acceleration was painfuly slow. I then went onside the coach. I had no
option but to sit on my MB in a cramped position till an LB became vacant. I
decided to play another trick on the others. Karan was the partner in the
crime as he was the second to wake up. We told all the others that a WDM-3D
from LKO shed is at the helm of our train! In reality, even we did not know
which loco our train had got. Me and Karan went to the door again with
adequate protection (sweaters, gloves etc). We were going along at a pace of
around 80-90 kph.

Except a couple of slowdowns (after which as usual we took ages to
accelerate), the run after Orai was uninterrupted. It looked like we would
recover majority of the lost time till CNB. But we were wrong. Our train
stopped at Bhimsen Jn. It was a quite long halt, about 15-20 minutes. A
container rake headed by TKD diesel was waiting in one of the loops. After
Bhimsen, It was a painfully bad run. For some time, we sped along at 60-70
kph. The countryside was beautiful with fields all around. Then stopped at
almost every signal on the way to CNB. At one such halt, Nitin went to the
loco with Karan to check out what he was told to be a WDM-3D! Instead they
found JHS WDM-3A 17759 at the helm! At a wayside loopline, we crossed a JHS
bound passenger & overtook a freight headed by JHS WDG-3A Shakti.

We finally joined the electrified lines from Delhi. The slow 15 kph run
continued right upto CNB. It also included a short halt at Govindpuri. We
finally pulled into CNB at 7.30, delayed by 45 minutes. After Sandeep and
Amruta joined us, we proceeded to the exit from the subway. Raghavendra Rao
was waiting for us near the exit. We took taxis and proceeded to the IIT for
the convention, about which nothing needs to be said. It was a fantastic
convention. I thoroughly enjoyed the two days there!

Average speeds (in kph):

CSTM - KYN: 57.85
KYN - NK: 54.69 (KYN - KSRA: 51, KSRA - IGP: 39, IGP - NK: 78.46)
NK - MMR: 72.27
MMR - BSL: 79.44
BSL - KNW: 76.87
KNW - HBJ (Habibganj): 63.29
HBJ - BPL: 27.78
BPL - LAR (Lalitpur): 88.93
LAR - JHS: 72.99
JHS - ORAI: 47.5
ORAI - CNB: 44.17

Average speed in double electrified section: 63.35
Average speed in single unelectrified section: 45.52
Overall average speed: 59.19

--
Regards,
Akshay Marathe