#Know your train 005
#Kalka Mail
#Name: This train connects Kolkata and Kalka, Haryana and bears the name of
Kalka.
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*Previously before independence, this train was named as
East India Railway Mail.
#Operator(s): This train is maintained and operated by the Kolkata based
Eastern Railways(ER).
#Inauguration: This train is one of the oldest
trains of India, It was
inaugurated on Monday,
January 1st 1866.
*This train(Numbered as 1UP/2DN) began operation between Calcutta
and Delhi and was further extended to Kalka.
*This train used to carry the
Viceroy of India and the other
British officials from Calcutta,
the then national capital of
India to Kalka from where they
carried on their cars to Shimla,
the summer capital of India.
*Kalka was the nearest station
of Shimla on Broad Gauge.
*Hence both the station and
the train had been very much
important for government
officials till air travel was
introduced.
*During that time this highly
prestigious train was known
as 1UP/2DN East India Railway
Mail.
#Regions and States: This train travels
through the states of
West Bengal, Jharkahnd,
Bihar, Uttar Pradesh,
Delhi, Haryana and
Chandigarh.
#Railway Zones and Halts: This train passes
through the Railway
Zones,
1.Eastern Railways
(ER)
2.East Central
Railways(ECR).
3.North Central
Railways(NCR)
4.Northern Railways
(NR).
*Having halts,
ER-4
ECR-10
NCR-12
NR-13
Total: 37 halts
between Kolkata
Howrah Junction
and Kalka.
#Languages: This train connects Bengali, Hindi
,Urdu and Punjabi speaking
regions of India.
#Speed: #Max: 110 Kmh between HWH and
GAYA &
#Min: 45 Kmh between MGS and CNB.
#Average Speed: This train travels a distance
of 1713 km in 32 hours&50
mins with an avg.speed of
52kmh.
#Disasters and accidents:13 coaches of Kalka Mail derailed on Kanpur-Fatehpur line near Fatehpur Malwa Station on 10 July 2011 afternoon.
* The cause is unknown though poor maintenance of the locomotive is suspected to be the cause as the engine had started swaying sideways just before the accident.
*More than 69 persons died and 200 were injured.
* The injured were taken to hospitals of Kanpur, Lucknow and Allahabad.
(source: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kalka_Mail
the disaster part only.)
#Ratings:1.Choie of people: Full of people
around the year- 8.5/10
2. Speed: Good- 7.5/10
3. Quality of food: Good- 8/10
4. Punctuality: Average-6.5/10
5. Cleanliness: Good- 7/10.
TOTAL: 37.5/50.

#Know_Your_Train
~~~#Konkan Kanya Express ~~~
#Name :-Konkan Kanya literally means Konkan's virgin, deriving its name from the Konkan region of India through which the train runs. It is an important train link serving people along the coastal areas of Konkan.
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#Description :-Konkan Kanya Express is an Indian Railways train running between Mumbai and Madgaon on the Konkan Railway route. The train covers the 580 km journey in about 13.5 hours during monsoon. It is an important train link serving people along the coastal areas of Maharastra and Goa.Its average speed is 43 kmph.During non-monsoon it covers the distance of 580 km in 11h 40 min with an average speed of 50km/hr. The Krishnarajpuram WDP4/WDP4-B is in-charge of this train. It has got ISO certificate for Cleanliness and Great Maintainence of coaches. Foreign touristers like to travel through this train.This train enjoys the highest patronage on KR.
#Inaugurated On :- 25th January 1998.
#Region :- Passes through region of Thane, Raigad, Ratnagiri & Sindhudurg.
.
#RSA :- Shares its Rakes with Mandovi Express. Total of 3 rakes shared between konkan Kanya and Mandovi Express..
.
#Zone :- Pass through zone of CR(Central Railway) and KR(Konkan Railway).
.
#Base :- Madgaon. Rakes maintained at Madgaon CDO..
.
#River :- 2 Major - Thane Creek Bridge and Mandovi River bridge.
.
#Physical_Region :- Pass through the plains of Raigad district, Tunnels of Ratnagiri District (2nd Longest tunnel in India Karbude Tunnel),Asia's 2nd tallest bridge Panval Viaduct And The Zuari River
.
#States :- 2 States. #Maharashtra 14, #Goa 4 halts
.
#Speed :- Avg. Speed with halts 43km/hr (During Monsoon) & 50km/hr (Non-monsoon).
Avg. Speed without halts 46km/hr ( During Monsoon) & 53km/hr (Non-monsoon)
.
#Languages :- Marathi, Konkani, Malwani speaking language
.
#Trivia :-
¤ One of the Best Pantry/Catering in the country
¤ ISO Certified train
¤ Best Coach Maintainence
¤ Lifeline for the People of Konkan
.
#Photos
¤ Pic 1 - RSA Train board
¤ Pic 2 - Konkan Kanya Express at Vilavde
¤ Pic 3 - Konkan Kanya Express entering Vaibhavwadi Station on KR..
¤ Pic 4 - Konkan Kanya Express at Bhoke (Source google).
¤ Pic 5 - Konkan Kanya Express entering Karmali (Source google)

#Know Your train 004
#Andhra Pradesh Express, pride of SCR.
#Name: This train bears the name of the state Andhra Pradesh and connects
its capital Hyderabad with the national capital New Delhi.
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#Operator(s): This train is maintained and operated by the Secunderabad
based South Central Railways(SCR).
#Inaguration: This train made its inagural run on 3rd October 1976.
*During its early years this train used to cover the total distance
within 23 hours(in 1978).
*This train was a 14-coacher train during its early years. Then it
it was hauled by a WDM-2 locomotive.
*In 1981 its coaches were increased to 21 and it was given a
5200 HP double headed WDM-2 locomotive and currently its a
24 coacher train with 7 AC coaches.
#Regions and states: This trian travels through the states of Andhra Pradesh
(both Telengana and AP), Maharashtra, Madhya
Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh and Delhi NCT(National Capital
Territory) connecting Hyderabad Deccan Namapally in
Andhra Pradesh with New Delhi.
#Halts and Railway Zones: This train travels through the railway zones of
South Central Railways(SCR), Central
Railways(CR), West Central Railways(WCR), North
Central Railways(NCR) and Northern Railways(NR),
*Having halts, SCR-7, CR-3, WCR-1, NCR-4, NR-2
total 15 halts between Hyderabad Deccan
Namapally and New Delhi.
#Languages: This train connects Telgu, Marathi, Hindi, Urdu and Punjabi
speaking regions of India.
#Locmotive: Being a very prestigious train of IR, AP express is lead by a
white giant, WAP(Wide Gauge-AC-Passenger)-7 locomotive
of Lallaguda(LGD) shed.
#Speed: Being hauled by a WAP-7, AP is a very fast train and often does
overspeeding.
#max: 112 kmh between Ballarshah Junction(BPQ) and Jhansi
Junction(JHS)
#min: 55 kmh between Mathura Junction(MTJ) and New Delhi(NDLS)
and between Secunderabad Junction(SC) and Ballarshah Jn
(BPQ).
#Travel time: This train covers a total distance of 1675 km within 26 hours and
40 minutes with an average speed of 62 kmh.
#Ratings: 1-Choice of people: Runs full all over the year-9/10
2-Time management: Good- 7.5/10
3-Cleanliness: Excellent- 10/10
4-Quality of food: Good- 7.5/10
5-Speed: Excellent- 9.5/10
Total: 34.5/50.

Pictures: Rameshwaram Express Nameboard and rakes, Kapaleeshwara Temple, Chennai, Ramanatha Swamy Temple, Rameshwaram, The Dhanushkodi Pier, and Pamban Viaduct and Indira Gandhi Road Bridge.
#KnowYourTrain: The Boat Mail (aka Rameshwaram Express). #TrainNo: 16101/02 (WEF September 1, 2013; Old No. 16701/02)
#Objective: At the time of introduction: To connect India and Sri Lanka; Current: Provides connection to the island of Jyotirlinga Shrine of Rameshwaram from the capital city of #TN, #Chennai. Runs almost parallel to the Bay of Bengal.
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#Etymology: The name of the train commemorates the 19th century communication service between Tamil Nadu and Sri Lanka mail service.
#InauguralRun: On the present route, February 24, 1914 (#Centurion)
#RakeMaker: ICF, #RakeSharing: Dedicated Rake, #Loco: Usually #TNP WDM3A
#Distance: 667 km, #Halts: 22, #IntermediateStations: 117
#Speed: 47 kmph, #FastestSection: 77 PMK-RMD, #SlowestSection: 8 PBM.
#NativeZone: SR (intrazone train), #State: #TN (intrastate train).
#DaysofRun: Daily, #Classes: 1AC, 2AC, 3AC, SL, UR, SLR.
#MajorLanguages: Tamil.
#Districts: Kanchipuram, Villupuram, Cuddalore, Nagapattinam, Thanjavur, Tiruchirappalli, Pudukottai, Sivagangai, and Ramanathapuram.
#MajorTowns/Cities/Attractions En Route:
#ChennaiEgmore (MS): 6th century World Heritage sites of Mamallapuram and Kanchipuram, the land of 1000 temples.
#Chengalpattu (CGL), #Villupuram (VM)
#Cuddalore (CUPJ): Alight here for Puducherry (#Pondicherry) Shri Aurobindo Ashram and the French global city of Auroville, 25 km. Buy Panruti jackfruit and cashews here.
#Chidambaram: World-famous NatarajaTemple
#Mayiladuthurai (MV): Navagraha Temples and other destinations like Nagore Dargah, Velankanni Church, Poompuhar Beach, and Vedaranyam/Kodiyakarai Bird Sanctuary.
#Kumbakonam (KMU): NavagrahaTemples (Temples for Nine Planets –Dosha Nivarana Temples) and lots of other temples. Requires at least 4-5 days to make non-stop visits to all major temples of Kumbakonam and its surroundings.
#Thanjavur (TJ): 10th century Brahadeeshwara Temple, Maratha Palace, and Tiruvayaru, the Birth Place of St. Thyagaraja, the father of Carnatic Classical Music.
#Tiruchirapalli (TPJ): Magnificent Sriragam Temple, 2nd century Grand Anicut Dam (still intact) built by the Grand Cholas, and RockFort Temple.
#Pudukottai (PDKT)/#Karaikkudi (KKDI): Chettinad Palace and Cuisine.
#Sivagangai (SVG)
#Ramanathapuram (RMD): Ervadi Dargah.
#Rameshwaram (RMM): Pamban/IG Road Bridge, The Jyotirlinga Shrine of Ramanatha Swamy, Tracing the footpath of Lord Ram, Pitru Pinda Dhaan Kshetra, and Marine Biosphere.
#MajorRivers/Lakes/Water Bodies:
#MS: Couum and Adyar
#CGL: Kolavai Lake adjacent to the station, Palar after CGL, and Madurantagam Lake
#VM: Panampet Lake after VM
#CUPJ: South Pennar before Panruti, Kedilam before CUPJ, Vellar after CUPJ, and Coleroon after CDM
#MV: #Cauvery.
#TJ: Arasalar at KMU and Vennar, a tributary of Cauvery, before TJ. Also runs parallel to #Cauvery from MV to TPJ along one of the most fertile regions and the #ricebowl of TN.
#PDKT: Vellar
#RMD: Vaigai before PMK and Bay of Bengal (Palk Straits) before RMM.
#BriefHistory:
The Boat Mail’s history is a lot older than the popular perception. In the 19th century, the Boat Mail commenced its journey as a rail-cum-ferry service and was operated from #Madras (#Chennai) and #Talaimannar (#SriLanka) via #Tuticorin. The train service used to be till Tuticorin rather than the present day Rameshwaram. From Tuticorin, a steamer service used to carry passengers to Talaimannar. This train took almost a day to reach Tuticorin from Chennai and was equipped with vestibules as of 1898 itself (probably the first ever train to have such a facility). During those times, there was no rail or road connection between Mainland India and the Rameshwaram Island.
In 1914, the #Pamban Bridge was inaugurated (also a #Centurion) and rail connectivity was established between Chennai and Rameshwaram and the end point of Boat Mail was changed to the now defunct and Tsunami-ravaged ghost town of #Danushkodi for the convenience of lesser sea travel of just 35 km against a much longer travel from Tuticorin.
This service took passengers to the world-famous Dhanushkodi pier, where a steamer heading for Talaimannar in Sri Lanka was anchored adjacent to the railway station. Under a special arrangement, a combined rail-cum-ferry ticket was on sale for Talaimannar passengers using Boat Mail. Similarly, the ferry service fare from Talaimannar included rail ticket charges. The train was also known as “Indo-Ceylon Express.”
As people of high stature and foreigners traveled by this train, it was equipped with a canteen on wheels. There was no road link to Rameswaram Island those days, and as such adequate number of luggage vans was attached to this train for transporting goods to the island.
On December 24, 1964, a cyclone (now being acknowledged in some quarters as probably being a Tsunami) washed away the entire town of Dhanushkodi, the pier, and a fully-loaded passenger train proceeding to Dhanushkodi. The damage was irrevocable and the tracks are still buried under huge sand dunes of Dhanushkodi. One has to visit the place personally to understand the fury of nature. From then onwards, operations of the train were short-terminated at Rameshwaram. The services of Boat Mail were suspended in May 2003 on the main line owing to the closure of the track between Thanjavur and Kumbakonam for gauge conversion work. In the meantime, the Boat Mail was run via chord line after the completion of gauge conversion works on the Tiruchi-Rameswaram section. With the main line on the BG map, the train was promptly restored to its original route of Cuddalore, Mayiladuthurai, and Thanjavur joining at Tiruchirappalli.
#Specialty: Centurion (both Boat Mail and Pamban Viaduct).
#Conclusion: No doubt, Boat Mail is one of the #Legendary trains of India, continuing to serve the people tirelessly every day. The rakes of this train are not so good and require immediate attention. At least in the centenary year, IR should do justice to this train. Is SR listening?
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Post Edited to include Cauvery crossing @ MV on clarification from one of our ever-reliable Admins, PSK.