Vishwamitri and Pratapnagar Narrow Gauge trip

Vishwamitri - Pratapnagar NG trip

For the trivia. Vishwamitri station has platforms at different levels. The NG platform is right under the BG platforms. Look at the train stopped on the BG platform

The NG platform at Vishwamitri station.

The BG platform. Mumbai-Porbandar Saurashtra Express is pulling into the station behind BRC WAM 4 20473. The station is actually a halt for Vadodara Jn

View of the NG platforms from BG platforms

Stolen from the days of the Raj. NG platforms once had an office attatched to it. Look at the luggage trolley

Enterance to the NG station

The unused ticket booking area on the NG side. Time tables show timings for the BG trains too. Nowadays, tickets are issued from a small booth on the BG platforms

Train no. 036, Jambusar-Pratapnagar-Dabhoi Fast passenger pulling into Vishwamitri behind ZDM 5 No. 531

The train at Vishwamitri. Note that it has four carriages and all the four are of different shapes. All are second class

The first carriage happens to be built in 1999. Pointsman at the station said it was an FC saloon earlier but was converted to second when FC was discontinued in the section

Strangely indeed the interiors of the coaches looked very clean. This is the converted FC saloon. During it's FC days, it had large windows. Maybe the big brothers at BG yards should learn cleanliness from thier lesser known NG sibilings

Interior of another coach. Since this train is a Fast passenger, all of it's coaches have padded seats. Shatabdi of NG? Note the doors in the middle

The coach also has side berth type seats. These are for vendors but is usually used by elders to take rest

Master of his little monster

A semaphore signal enroute. I do not know whether they are really operational since there are no ropes attatched to it. All signals have the sign "G" on a circular piece of sheet. Any idea what does it mean?

Another smart semaphore signal. One pole for both the sides. I dont think this one too is operational

A small unused station enroute. The BG line runs from BRC and takes oil tankers to the shed at pratapnagar

Where else can you see a train waiting for the road traffic to clear? The guard becomes the policeman for a moment. He controls the traffic and close the gate allowing the train to pass. The train then stops at a distance to let him in(!!!)

Approaching the vast expanse of Pratap Nagar Station

This man seems to be a railway employee watching the bogies. Remains of the station's glorious and busy past can be seen in the photo. These lines are declared as sick lines and why not? They are. Remains of the old Fouling Mark too can be seen

Our train pulling into PF no. 2. No. 037, the Dabhoi-Pratapnagar-Jambusar Mixed is waiting on PF no. 1.

ZDM 5 526 from Pratapnagar waiting with the 037 Mixed to Jambusar. There are no freight wagons but the train is stilled called a Mixed. Train No. 036 is on left

Loco pilots go on with thier mandatory checks

Loco pilot Anwar Husain and Assistant Kamibhai Rajput. Kamibhai happens to be a professional photographer too and says he has a lot of photos of ZB class steam from 1970's. He invited me to his home one day in Dabhoi and he has promised me that he will

Looking out of PRatapnagar Station. It was not this loco that I footplated and I would like to kep the name of the driver of the loco I fottplated a secret

Not a Gauge Conversion excercise. These ar BG oil tankers that has come to deliver diesel to the NG shed her