National Rail Museum, New Delhi, India

The National Rail Museum in Chanakyapuri, New Delhi, displays exhibits on the history of rail transport in India. The museum was inaugurated on 1 February 1977, and spans over 10 acres (40,000 m2). In addition to its vast galleries, the museum features simulations of coaches, diesel engines, and steam engines. The museum has about 88 real-life size outdoor exhibits comprising of locomotives, saloons, carriages, crane, and special coaches of various gauges. All the exhibits are special in itself and have historical significance. Each has a unique story.

History
The National Rail Museum was first proposed in 1962, under the advisement of rail enthusiast Michael Graham Satow. Construction began in 1970 and on 7 October 1971 the foundation stone was laid at the museum’s present site in Chanakyapuri, New Delhi, by the then-President of India V. V. Giri. The museum was inaugurated as the Rail Transport Museum in 1977 by Kamalapati Tripathi, the minister for public transportation.

National Rail Museum, the first rail museum in India, was established in 1977 at Chanakyapuri, New Delhi. The Indian Railways now have 33 Museums, Heritage Parks and Galleries spread all across the country.

The National Rail Museum was originally intended to be a part of a larger museum that covered the history of railways, roadways, airways, and waterways in India; however, this never happened and it was officially renamed the National Rail Museum in 1995.

The National Rail Museum in New Delhi has one of the most comprehensive collections on the history of Indian Railways.

From century-old locomotives, to models and informative panels and games, it’s perfect for anyone looking to become acquainted India’s railway history.

Main exhibits

Patiala State Monorail Trainways
This unique steam monorail was built in 1907. The train is based on the Ewing System and connected the town of Bassi with the city of Sirhind-Fatehgarh, approximately 9.7 km (6 mi) apart. This unique train system consists of a single-rail track on which the load-carrying wheel runs, while large iron wheels on either side keep the train upright. The train was built by Orenstein & Koppel of Berlin and ran until October 1927 when the line was closed. The engine and the chief engineer’s inspection car remained in the railways’ scrapyard where they were discovered by railroad historian Mike Satow in 1962. One of the engines was restored to full working order by the Northern Railway Workshops in Amritsar. The Chief Engineer’s private inspection car was also reconstructed on an old underframe. The two are now in working condition and are on display at the museum.

Fairy Queen: The world’s oldest working steam locomotive in operational service.

Morris Fire Engine: The Morris Fire Engine was built by the fire engineers John Morris and Sons Ltd of Salford, Lancashire, in 1914. The only other Morris-Belsize fire-engine known to exist is preserved by the Whitewebbs Museum of Transport, Clay Hill, London. It was converted to use pneumatic tires, while the fire engine at the National Rail Museum runs on solid rubber tires.

Saloon of The Maharaja of Mysore
Royal luxury and comfort, from the days when the Maharaja’s writ ran across Mysore state. This was the personal saloon car of the Maharaja of Mysore. The saloon is designed using teak, gold, ivory, and other materials.

The luxurious design of the Mysore Maharaja’s Saloon says much about the exuberant lifestyle of the past royals of India.

Built in 1899 at the Bangalore workshop of Mysore State Railway, this saloon was a part of a special three-coach train used by Maharaja Krishnaraja Wadiyar of Mysore and his family. The other coaches – for the Maharani and dining-cum-kitchen car – of the train are preserved at the Mysore Rail Museum.

The state emblem on the Saloon is proof of the fact that this was indeed the royal coach. Built on the underframe supplied by M/s Hurst Nelson of U.K, a unique feature of this carriage was that it could be run on both broad gauge (5’6”) as well as meter gauge.

Furthermore, this could be accomplished during the journey without disturbing the distinguished occupants of the bogies.

This particular coach is a wooden bodied eight wheeler, with a steel under-frame. It has a vestibule system to enable it to be connected with rest of the train.

It was, in fact, one of the earliest vestibule coaches to be used in India.

Royal saloon of the Gaekwar of Baroda
In 1862, when Maharaja Khaderao Gaekwar, the then Maharaja of the Princely state of Baroda (now Vadodra city), inaugurated the 13-km railway line from Dabhoi to Miyagam, he not only started the first narrow gauge line of India but also what was to become the longest narrow gauge network of India till date. What also made this line distinctive was that this was the first railway line in British India to be owned by a Princely State of India. Khaderao’s successor, Sayajirao Gaekwar III, further expanded the narrow gauge line network across Baroda, along with bringing many other reforms to the princely state during his reign from 1875-1939.

The Gaekwar’s saloon was a broad gauge coach built in 1886 by Parel Workshops of the Bombay Baroda & Central India (BB&CI) Railway for use by the then Maharaja of Baroda, Sayajirao Gaekwar III. It was later used by BB&CI, with number ERB-20.

The entrance to the coach is from the attached balcony on one side. The balcony was fit for one person to stand in to operate the manual brakes of coach.

Inside the coach, the restoration work has been done almost to perfection. The attention to detail on the ceiling, the woodwork and the fittings has brought the saloon back to its days of glory.

As is expected of a royal coach, the Gaekwar’s saloon is spaciously designed with the amenities its royal occupant would have been accustomed to. This intricately designed passageway leads us into another room inside the saloon.

The attendants’ quarter of the saloon, not as luxurious as that of the Gaekwar themselves but certainly more comfortable than a regular/passenger coach!

This is a unique saloon of six wheels (three axles); the centre axle is rigid while the two outer axles (at each end) could swivel according to the curvature of the track and controlled by a central spring system. The outer axles had vacuum as well as hand brakes.

The flapped roof provided filtered ventilation inside the saloon car. It was a common feature in the VIP coaches of the time.

To ensure the smooth running of the saloon on the tracks, these oiling points were filled with lubricants at regular intervals. They would trickle down to the wheels and to the connecting bars of the car.

Saloon of The Prince of Wales
This saloon car was built for the Prince of Wales (later King Edward VII) for his visit to India.

Saloon of The Maharaja of Indore
This was the saloon car of Holkar Maharaja of Indore.

Indigenously-built locomotive
The F-734 is the first ever locomotive to be built completely in India – a milestone in the history of Indian Railways. From its history of being the first ever locomotive to be built entirely in India to its restoration at the museum, here is a look at the F-734, a prized possession of the National Rail Museum, New Delhi.

Manufactured in 1895 by the Ajmer Workshop of the North Western Railway, meter gauge steam locomotive F-734, set the ball rolling for the future of locomotive manufacturing in the country. It was withdrawn from service in 1958 after rendering 63 years of service.

The F-734 was used on the Rajputana Malwa Railway (also known as Rajputana State Railway before 1882). It ran from Delhi to Indore and upto Ahmedabad, and later on Bombay Baroda & Central India (BB & CI) Railway for mixed (passenger and goods) traffic.

The number plate of the locomotive, where RMR stands for Rajputana Malwa Railway, F1 is the class and the locomotive number is 734.

Prior to it, locomotives were assembled at Jamalpur Workshops from spare parts supplied by the original manufacturers.

The design of this locomotive is taken from the F class engines built by Dubbs and Company from Glasgow, U.K, in 1875, which weighed only 19 tons in working order. The six wheeled tender (the coal carrying structure, behind the driver’s cab), added 13 tons more to the total weight.

A 38.25 ton 0-6-0 wheel arrangement locomotive is equipped with Stephensons valve gear. The connecting rods are inside the frame while the side rods are outside.

This part of the locomotive is called the cowcatcher or Pilot. It is a strong metal frame mounted at the front of a locomotive to remove the obstacles on the track as train moves forward.

Colossal locomotives
One of the heaviest broad gauge locomotives, XG/M-911 weighed a massive 161 ton and was used on the North Western Railway and later Eastern Punjab Railway for hump-yard shunting. It is infact one of the biggest ‘Non-Articulated’ locomotive of the Indian Railways i.e. the type of locomotive where the engine units are attached to the main frame and are not separate, independently moving units like in the case of the Garatt.

THe XG/M 911 was manufactured by Beyer Peacock & Co, a company from Manchester, UK, and was imported in 1936 by the North Western Railway, India.

The water column showcased next to the locomotive was meant for delivering a large volume of water into the tank or tender of the steam locomotive in as less time as possible.

Water columns were a vital part of railway station equipment in the old days when the steam locomotives had to refill their tanks with water at regular intervals, during the course of their journey.

These columns were designed to deliver upto ten thousand litres of water per minute!

A typical British design, the locomotive is built with inside plate frames i.e. the frames are situated within the wheels.

This locomotive is equipped with two 23.5” x 28” cylinders, ‘Walschaerts’ valve gear and three ‘Rosspop’ type safety valve.

It originally had a 0-8-0 wheel arrangement but was later changed to 2-8-2. The wheel arrangement signifies the number of pilot wheels-driving wheels-trailing wheels respectively.

The locomotive had an axle load of 23 tons; an axle load being the maximum weight borne per axle.

Its maker number was 650 and Indian Railway number was XG/M-911.

Only three engines were ever built for this XG class design, one of them now stationed at the National Rail Museum, New Delhi.

The biggest wheels to have ever run on the Indian Railways belonged to this giant locomotive numbered EM-922. With a wheel diameter of almost seven feet, this locomotive was the prefered choice for pulling many VIP trains and accordingly changed names from ‘Lord Clyde’ to ‘Roosevelt’ to ‘Queen Express’. This 90 ton locomotive began service in 1907 and was used for passenger, mail and express trains on the Great Indian Peninsular Railway and later on the North Western Railway.

It is worth noticing how the entire structure has been assembled through the use of bolts and nothing else. It was an inspiring feat of engineering that such long lasting and complex designs were put together without the use of welding or other techniques of joinery.

The EM 922 is a broad gauge locomotive, built at North British Locomotive Co. Atlas Works, Glasgow in 1907. The locomotive has the standard two cylinder setup. It has an inside plate frame. So, the connecting rods as well as all the working mechanism, the wheel turning axle, is actually within the plates. Waelsharts walve system has been used in the locomotive. It has a wheel arrangement of 4-4-0, which was later modified to 4-4-2.

This model was used up till and during the partition, after being rebuilt in 1941.

A small turbine was used in the locomotive for generating electricity, for using lights inside. This new addition was standardised and added to all later models of locomotives.

EM-922 was converted to a superheated locomotive in 1922 and rebuilt in 1941 at Mughalpura Workshops when its class was changed from E-1 to EM.

A superheater converts steam into dry/superheated steam to decrease the loss of energy due to condensation, leading to an increase in the efficiency of the locomotive.

The HP 31412 was famously known for its trips across the Thar, made possible with its huge 12 wheel tender which carried 10 tons of coal and more than 27000 litres of water. This enabled it to make prolonged runs without stopping for coal or water in the Desert. Overall, the tender weighed 64.5 tons, which was more than the locomotive weight of 57.5 tons.This powerful meter gauge locomotive had the longest tender structure of any locomotive class in India.

It was imported from the Baldwin Locomotive Works, Philadelphia, USA, just a year after India’s independence, in 1948 and was manufactured as per BESA (British Engineering Standard Association).

HP-31412 was used to haul passenger trains over Jodhpur Railway and subsequently Northern Railway.

The wheel arrangement of this locomotive is 4-6-2. It also had a large firebox grate area which enabled it to burn inferior quality coal.

The Fireless Locomotive
Using ready-made steam instead of fire for generating pressure, this locomotive was especially designed for use in factories with inflammable material.

A fireless locomotive is, as the name suggests, one which does not use fire, i.e. it does not need to burn coal or create any kind of fire to generate steam. Such locomotives are used in places like petroleum refineries, chemical plants where a spark flying out of the locomotive chimney or even a fire drop from the locomotive, could prove to be a major fire hazard. The locomotive displayed at the National Rail Museum was used in Sindhri Fertilizers Co. in Bihar, India.

Since there is no fire generation involved in this locomotive, instead of the boiler, a fireless locomotive has a pressure vessel mounted on the underframe. In this high pressure steam vessel it collects ready-made steam from a distant static steam/boiler plant.

Due to limited capacity of the steam accumulator, this locomotive had maximum restricted speed of 18.5 mph and was limited to short area movements. This engine was used for shunting in areas of inflammable material such as oil, jute, etc.

This 35 ton broad-gauge (5’6”) locomotive with 0-4-0 wheel arrangement was manufactured by Henschell, Germany in 1953.

Henschel & Son was a German company, located in Kassel, best known during the 20th century as the maker of transportation equipment, including locomotives, trucks, buses and trolleybuses.

Electric locomotive 4502 Sir Leslie Wilson: This 1928 WCG-1 locomotive belonged to the Great Indian Peninsular Railway (presently Central Railway). It is one of India’s first generation 1,500 V DC electric locomotives, which were known as khakis (English: crabs) since they make a curious moaning sound when at rest, and while in motion the linkage emits an unusual swishing sound. Its unusual features included an articulated body, which made it ideal for use in heavily curved sections of the Ghat mountains. The WCG-1 was in operation as a shunting locomotive until 1994 at Mumbai’s Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus.

Electric locomotive Sir Roger Lumley: This WCP-1 engine has unique wheel arrangements. These locomotives were supplied by the Vulcan Foundry, UK, in 1930. They were electric locomotives operating under 1,500 V DC. They are known for hauling the Mumbai–Pune Deccan Queen Express in its early years. A prototype of this locomotive is on display at the Nehru Science Centre in Mumbai.

Miniature Rail Gallery
A must-visit experience, this feature is on the top floor of the Indoor Gallery. It depicts modern India through working rail models.

Railway technology
The railways became popular at an unprecedented speed. The frequency and the quantity of trains was increasing as more and more people become dependent on it’s services. At the same time, there was a need to enhance the safety of the passengers and the number of trains on the track increased. Many instruments were thus developed for better management of railway sections. One of them was the three position block instrument, seen on the right.

The Neale’s Ball token instrument, which is used this day to manage trains especially for single line track. A token is a physical object which a train driver is required to have or see before entering onto a particular section of single track.

A luggage weighing machine used on the railway stations of the past. Manufactured by W.&T. Avery of Birmingham and could weigh upto 250 kilograms.

Vision
In the last 160 years of its existence, the Railways in India has grown and expanded by leaps and bounds, yet there are still unchartered territories to cover. Slowly but steadily the railways is connecting every part of India, which with the constant innovations in technology is much easier to do today than it was before.

Though the newer generation is more used to its air travel and automobiles, it is imperative that the railways continue to grow; because even with all the other options available, the experience of an Indian train ride will remain unparalleled and continue to enthrall people for generations to come.