Nilgiris Mountain Rail (NMR) resumed service on Tuesday after over a fortnight or so since the heritage train was cancelled from November 16 owing to landslides following rains in Nilgiris district.
Due to heavy rains, the service from Mettupalayam and Udhagamandalam (Ooty) was cancelled as the track between Aderly and Hillgrover stations was badly affected, following falling of boulders and trees, railway sources said. Sources also added that though the services resumed for two days in between, it was again suspended till Monday, thus disappointing many tourists who had come to the hill station to experience the NMR.
On Tuesday, the NMR was hauled by a steam locomotive after a group of foreign tourists made a special request for it. They reportedly paid Rs 2 lakh to make it happen. Though they wanted to travel the entire length of the railway line using a steam locomotive, they could get permission only to travel from Coonoor to Ooty due to the damages caused to tracks.
Designated as a World Heritage site by UNESCO, NMR was established in 1900s by the British. It used to be completely operated using steam locomotives. However, over time, the train started using diesel locomotives in its route, switching to steam locomotives only rarely. The NMR is a part of the Mountain Railways of India site in the World Heritage Centres which also has Darjeeling Himalayan Railway and Kalka Shimla Railway. The train takes almost five hours to complete a trip from Mettupalayam to Ooty, a distance of almost 50 kilometres. The trip downhill is completed in around three hours and 35 minutes.
(With PTI inputs)