History of Darjeeling Himalayan Railway

The settlement at Darjeeling really began in 1828 with British interest. By 1835, it was separated from Sikkim for establishing a Sanatorium for the invalid servants of the East India Company. It then consisted of a monastery on observatory hill clustered with about 20 huts and a population of about 100 people. Planning began in 1839, to lay out the Darjeeling Town and construct a hill road connecting Siliguri, Pankhabari, Kurseong and Darjeeling. At the same time, evolution of hotels began, the first being The Darjeeling Family Hotel's, followed by other hotels. By 1840, Darjeeling Town had about 30 buildings and a few respectable houses. Mother Teresa was involved in the first convent school, established in 1846. Tea bushes were brought in by the British from China and Tea plantations began spreading rapidly from 1857. To meet the expanding requirements, a new road fit for carts was planned in 1861. Subsequently, in 1879, the Darjeeling Himalayan Railway was constructed on the same hill cart road

By 1871 Railway lines had been laid till Goalundo (now in Bangladesh), and proved profitable to the Eastern Bengal Railway (EBR). Such was the good dividend being obtained that its directors shot down any proposal for extension towards Siliguri, let alone Darjeeling. Thus it was left to the state-owned Northern Bengal Railway (NBR) to lay a track from Poradaha to Damukdiya on the right bank of the Ganga (13 miles), and then a metre-gauge stretch from Saraghat on the left bank to Siliguri (197 miles), the Ganga crossing being made on steam ferries. But neither NBR nor EBR was willing to take on the hills of Darjeeling, and sink money in an enterprise that appeared to be unprofitable.

While corporate organisations did not attempt a rail route to Darjeeling, an individual not only dared envision it, but also translated his dream into reality. After train services reached the plains of Siliguri in 1878, Franklin Prestage, Agent of the Eastern BengaL Railway, foresaw the utiLity of a rail link between the hills of Darjeeling and the plains. He submitted a scheme for the construction of a two feet gauge railway line from Siliguri to Darjeeling. His scheme was mainly driven by hard economic considerations viz., the huge difference in the cost of essential commodities between Darjeeling and Siliguri, the need to carry out tea for export and the inability of the existing road to handle the growing traffic.

In a detailed scheme submitted to the Government of Bengal and approved by the Lt. Governor Sir Ashley Eden, he pointed out how a railway could substantially reduce the cost of transport between Darjeeling and the plains. Rice, which sold at Rs. 98 a ton at Siliguri, cost Rs. 238 at Darjeeling! He was also convinced that the cost of construction of the 2 feet gauge rail-line would not be prohibitive, and locomotives, small but powerful enough to climb steep gradients, could be designed.

Prestage received final sanction for his project on April 8, 1879 and formed the Darjeeling Steam Tramway Co. However, the idea of operating the line as a steam tramway was soon abandoned and, on September 15, 1881, the company adopted the designation of Darjeeling Himalayan Railway Co. (DHR), which remained effective until it was taken over by the Government of free India on October 20, 1948. Throughout that period Gillanders Artbuthnot & Co., one of the oldest managing houses in Calcutta, handled its financial, legal and purchasing interests.

World Heritage Status of Darjeeling Himalayan Railway

Indian Railways in recognition of its social, cultural,economic and industrial value as a lifeline of India, made an application to UNESCO for World Heritage Inscription of Darjeeling Himalayan Railway (DHR) in 1998.

The world heritage committee of UNESCO at its 23th session held at Marrakesh, Morocco decided to inscribe Darjeeling Himalaya Railway site on the world Heritage list.

UNESCO's World Heritage Committee inscribed DHR as a World Heritage Site on 5th December 1999 stating the following reasons:

An outstanding example of the influence of an innovative transportation system on social & economic development of a multi-cultural region, which was to serve as a model for similar developments in many parts of the world. ( C(ii) )

The development of railways in the 19th century had a profound influence on social and economic developments in many parts of the world. This process is illustrated in an exceptional and seminal fashion by the DHR. ( C(iv) )

“The DHR is the first, and still the most outstanding, example of a hill passenger railway. Opened in 1881, it applied bold and ingenious engineering solutions to the problem of establishing an effective rail link across a mountainous terrain of great beauty. It is still fully operational and retains most of its original features intact.

DHR has introduced special services to suit tourists' need

DHR is offering special Joy Rides between Darjeeling and Ghum, extra pair of trains to/from New Jalpaiguri and Jungle (Heritage) Safari during this tourist season.

Time Table of DHR

• Joy Ride is between Darjeeling-Ghum-Darjeeling, Round trip is about 2 Hours

• Sukna Special is between Siliguri-Sukna-Siliguri, Round Trip is about 2 hours

• Jungle Safari is between Siliguri-Tindharia-Siliguri every weekend, Round Trip is about 5 and half hours.

Please note: 3D services run only during tourist seasons. Please check the site for announcements. Sukna Special and Jungle Safari are on demand. They are booked by local tour operators or by group.

Daily Train Services

DHR operates 3 pairs of Regular Trains

• 1D Up. from New Jalpaiguri (NJP) departing at 09.00 hrs to Darjeeling (DJ) arriving at 15.30 hrs.

• 2D Dn. from Darjeeling (DJ) departing at 09.15 hrs to New Jalpaiguri (NJP) arriving at 16.00 hrs.
  Composition: 1 First Class + 2 Second Class + 1 Second Class cum Luggage Van
  Locomotive: NDM6 Type Diesel Locomotive.
   

• 3D Up from New Jalpaiguri (NJP) departing at 08.30 hrs to Kurseong (KGN) arriving at 13.10 hrs.

• 4D Dn from Kurseong (KGN) departing at 14:30 hrs to New Jalpaiguri (NJP) arriving at 19.00 hrs.
  Composition: 3 First Class + 1 First Class Cum Guard Van
  Locomotive : NDM6 Type Diesel Locomotives.
   

• 9D Up from Kurseong (KGN) departing at 15.00 hrs to Darjeeling (DJ) arriving at 18.00 hrs.

• 10D Dn. from Darjeeling (DJ) departing at 10.15 hrs to Kurseong (KGN) arriving at 13.00 hrs.
  Composition : 1 First class + 1 Second class + 1 Second Class cum Luggage Van or 2 First Class + 1 Second Class
  Locomotives : 'B' Class Steam loco

Joy Ride Trains :

Joy Ride Train: This is running from Darjeeling to Ghum and back to Darjeeling with a 10 minutes stoppage at Batasia loop and 30 minutes stoppage at Ghoom Museum and the fare includes entry fee of the Ghoom Museum.
Composition : 3 First Class Coaches.
Locomotive : 'B' Class Steam Locomotives.

Sukna Steam Special : This is running from Siliguri Junction to Sukna and back to Siliguri Junction with a 30 minutes stoppage at Sukna for visiting Sukna Photo Gallery.
Composition : 3 Coaches.
Locomotive : 'B' Class Steam Locomotives.

Special Train Services or Trains on Demand

Holiday Special or Jungle Safari Special: The Holiday Specials are offered on Saturdays, Sundays and on General Holidays on demand from Siliguri Jn. To Tindharia and back. The Tourists can enjoy breathtaking views of Mahananda Wildlife Sanctuary and the World Famous Z-Reverses between Sukna and Tindharia.
Composition : 2/3 Coaches
Locomotive: 'B' Class Steam or NDM6 Locomotives

Charter Trains:

DHR offers the Chartered trains for Tourists, Travel Agencies, Corporate Houses and film shooting etc. either single trip or round trip from any station to any station. The composition and timings are flexible. The tourists can choose their own composition from a wide variety of coach types. Usually Steam Locomotives are provided for Charter Trains