IRFCA Mailing List Archive
Messages 2621 - 2640
From: Apurva Bahadur <iti@giaspn01.email
Subject: meals on rails
Date: 20 May 1998 02:47:00 -0500
Gang,
Please list out the best meals and the worst meals you have had on a
train.
The best food IMHO will be the trains which home at Calcutta and carry
the catering staff from there. I have had excellent meals in the past on
8001 Dn (Mumbai - Howrah mail via Nagpur) and 2859 Dn (CSTM- HWH
Geetanjali).
The best meal on the run recently was on the 3003 Up Calcutta - Mumbai
Mail via Allahabad. Real generous servings of extremely well made food.
The worst food you get in the Solapur - Wadi sector. Dry rice with a
equally dry and tasteless boiled egg (in a old newspaper). Matches the
dry landscape outside I guess.
The best station food I have had in recent times is at Guntakal with
their superb egg curry (the meal after the dry stuff at Solapur for
lunch on a very late 6009 Dn Mumbai Chennai Mail).
Please share your experiences.
Apurva Bahadur
From: Auroprem Kandaswami <kandaswa@apple.email
Subject: Re: meals on rails
Date: 19 May 1998 06:50:00 -0500
Apurva,
Some of the best meals I have enjoyed in my rail
travel on IR are:
Chicken Biriyani at Guntakal Junction
(Nescafe coffee served at Guntakal is also excellent since
a very long time)
I got to taste this, while travelling by
6009 Mumbai-Chennai Mail for dinner.
Tamarind rice / Curd rice at Renigunta. This one is really
worth a try - definitely for all serious Vegetarians. You
get this hot and fresh when travelling by 6012
Madras-Dadar Express arriving Renigunta at around Noon.
The exotic and special taste of the Andhra rice adds to
the overall appeal of these food packets, made by SCR
Departmental Catering, Renigunta.
Another common snack which is popular on IR, at least on
SCR to my knowledge is the Bread-Omelet served for
breakfast.
I do strongly agree with Apurva that food on Wadi-Solapur
section is 'dry' and poor. I once had no choice but to
crackdown a few Puris served at Kurduvadi Junction during
dinner time on 6064 Chennai-Dadar Express, the dish
being sold as 'Gharam Gharam Puri-Bhaji'. My teeth still
aches when I think of this 'Taja' dish!
Auro
>Gang,
>
>Please list out the best meals and the worst meals you have had on a
>train.
>
>The best food IMHO will be the trains which home at Calcutta and carry
>the catering staff from there. I have had excellent meals in the past on
>8001 Dn (Mumbai - Howrah mail via Nagpur) and 2859 Dn (CSTM- HWH
>Geetanjali).
>
>The best meal on the run recently was on the 3003 Up Calcutta - Mumbai
>Mail via Allahabad. Real generous servings of extremely well made food.
>
>The worst food you get in the Solapur - Wadi sector. Dry rice with a
>equally dry and tasteless boiled egg (in a old newspaper). Matches the
>dry landscape outside I guess.
>
>The best station food I have had in recent times is at Guntakal with
>their superb egg curry (the meal after the dry stuff at Solapur for
>lunch on a very late 6009 Dn Mumbai Chennai Mail).
>
>Please share your experiences.
>
>Apurva Bahadur
>
From: Heinrich Hubbert <hubbert@cityweb.email
Subject: Re: Indian Railway Study Group
Date: 19 May 1998 12:33:00 -0500
Heinrich Hubbert wrote:
>
> Philippe Quiot (TOG Devt. SA) wrote:
> >
> > Hello,
> >
> > Oh, oh...
> >
> > More later about preserving a Y-something... but...
> >
> > - rather bad news first - I suspect that / with IR /
> > price for scrap is NOT the same as price for reuse
>
> I do not think so..
>
> > (whatever the kind of reuse...)
>
> Philippe;
> As far as I know, IR sells condemned steam-locos, like other public
> property, by tender.
> These are anounced with ads in newspapaers like "The Hindustan Times".
> So the process should be quite open, but it should be tricky to locate
> that certain one. I was told by some staff of Jetlasar recently, that
> five of their abandoned Y s were put up for auction in Ajmer and I were
> sold with some percent discount, as the customer (a scrap-vendor
> presumeably) took five pices.
> Actually, the price is set on the basis of the locos-material-value
> (Iron, Copper,...).
> On the other hand, prices for scrap-material are higher then on the
> international market.
>
> I have some contacts to the Rail Bhavan and were able to discuss some
> conservation issues withs seniors.
> Do not expect, that IR would give you a better price as you are a
> conservationist.
>
> >
> > - ???? - should talk to french Baie de Somme:
> > for british enthusiasts... their meter gauge network
> > is just "the other side of the water" !
> >
> > - then rather good news - re: transportation, prices
> > are NOT that high...
> > same Baie de Somme are well experienced at this kind
> > of transport with the MICHELINE (ex-Madagascar);
> >
> > a couple of years ago,
> > they also made a study for bringing a meter gauge
> > PACIFIC (french one) from VietNam and through the
> > negociations... prices were virtually
> > cut by 6 from approx. "just less that 1 million FF"
> > to "probably less than 150'000 FF"
>
> I do not know Vietnam, but you should not expect such story in India. It
> is rather a matter of burreaucracy, but...
>
> > well... Vietnamese Railways mistakingly scrapped their PACIFIC
> > after everything was offically OK for preserving her...
>
> ...at the end you should get your loco.
>
> > let's try to do better with an Y-something from India !
> >
> > In short... the idea is worth being studied further...
>
> Oh yes, from my discussions with the board, and the manage rof the
> railway-museum, I know, that there are some more plans for steam-trains
> on BG, but on the MG we should not wait to long,a sthere are only a
> handfull of Y s left.
>
> > ------------------------------------------------------
From: C.L.Zeni <clzeni@mindspring.email
Subject: [Fwd: [D] FW: UP Production SD90MACs at GMDD London
Date: 19 May 1998 20:41:00 -0500
Gents,
Thought you'd like to see this note about the IR units being readied at
GMDD, London Ontario Canada.
--
Craig Zeni - REPLY TO -->> clzeni at mindspring dot com
<A HREF="http://www.mindspring.com/~clzeni/index.html">http://www.mindspring.com/~clzeni/index.html</A>
Laugh and the world laughs with you. Cry and the world laughs louder.
From: Apurva Bahadur <iti@giaspn01.email
Subject: Re: Upper Quadrant signalling system
Date: 20 May 1998 18:13:00 -0500
Donald,
Our railways has already destroyed all the steam locos there are. I am now
thinking whether the railways would have the willingness to preserve the
first and second generation electric (specially DC electrics) and diesels
(specially the meter gauge diesels and the DL500 - WDM1).
Apurva Bahadur
Donald L. Mills, Jr wrote:
> In West Virginia, we just saw the video on India Rails and it showed the
> very things you are describing. It sounded great. Unfortunately, it also
> showed the destruction of many of your steam engines. I hope your
> railroads are not as stupid as ours and destroy them all. Don
>
> ----------
> > From: Apurva Bahadur <iti@giaspn01.email
> > To: IRIZ <irfca@cs.email
> > Subject: Upper Quadrant signalling system
> > Date: Tuesday, May 19, 1998 4:10 AM
> >
> > Observations of the Pune Karad Footplate ride:
> >
> > The single line from Pune(PA) to Kolhapur(KOP) via Miraj (MRJ)
> > has the Oil lamp lit upper quadrant semaphore system. The 'token' for
> > the 'route relay interlock' consist of a metal ball which must be
> > carried in the loco as a permission to enter a section. In case the
> > train is 'passing through' meaning not stopping at the station, the
> > assistant driver puts on a thick arm protector and leans out of the
> > loco. One of the station staff carries the token in a reed and leather
> > hoop about two feet in diameter. The assistant driver in one rapid move
> > drops the older token and picks up the fresh token from this man
> > standing on the ground. Then the assistant driver shows the green flag
> > to the station master as well as honks the horn to indicate a good 'pick
> > up'. Then he shouts the token number along with the section name to the
> > driver who enters it in his log. The token is picked up in the night
> > in the same way, except the man from the station also carriers a flaming
> > kerosene soaked rag to indicate his position in the night.
> > The overwhelming concern on the footplate was the early sighting of
> > signals. The drivers really stained to 'sight' the signals much before
> > the appearance of the 'sighting board'. The 'sighting board' is a
> > rectangular board with one circle and horizontal lines above and below
> > it. This board has fluorescent tape or reflectors for use in the night.
> > It is from the 'sighting board' that the signal should be easily
> > visible. But the drivers could spot the 'distant' or 'home' signals from
> > a much earlier distance. It is amazing to see the drivers agreeing with
> > each other 'distant caution' or 'home caution -road one' where my
> > untrained eyes could not see anything at all in the back ground foliage
> > and rocks. Not only the drivers 'sighted' the signals, while shouting
> > the aspect of the signal to each other in the 80 dB footplate noise,
> > they also raised their palms to mimic the aspect of the signal with
> > their fingers. One interesting term I heard was 'Distant - Forty Five' -
> > the angle of the distant signal - it the 'attention' mode. Similarly
> > there was 'Advanced starter Ninety' - Proceed at full speed !
> > The 'Distant' signal (Yellow coloured with a fish tail notch) can be
> > 'on' (Horizontal - next signal is red), or at Attention (45 degrees up -
> > next signal is clear). 'Attention' is the semaphore equivalent of
> > 'double yellow', there is a separate yellow lamp which gets uncovered
> > during 'attention' to light up 'double yellow' in the night.
> > The 'Home' signal (Red with white bands before the platform) can be
> > 'on' (Horizontal - Do not cross), at Caution ( 45 degrees, can cross but
> > next signal is not clear) or 'Proceed' (fully vertical - proceed at full
> > speed).
> > The Home signal also serves as route indicator. There are would be three
> > home signals if the station has one main track and two 'loop' platform
> > tracks. The track nearest to the station master's cabin is the 'Road
> > One'. Thus out of the three home signals, the appropriate signal would
> > indicate in which directions the points are set.
> > Just after the platform is the 'Starter' signal (Red with white
> > bands). This can be 'On' (Horizontal - Do not cross) or at Caution (45
> > degrees - cross with speed restriction).
> > Once the platform is cleared we come across the 'Advanced Starter'
> > which can be either On (Horizontal) or Proceed (Fully Vertical).
> > There is also a gate signal indicating that the level crossing gate is
> > closed.
> >
> > Apurva Bahadur
> >
> >
From: Apurva Bahadur <iti@giaspn01.email
Subject: Re: meals on rails
Date: 20 May 1998 18:17:00 -0500
Thanks Auro for your intresting reply, why have you slowed your conrtibutions
? I very eagerly await your mails !
The tea & the 'bread - butter' by the Agarwal contractor at Daund is also
legendary.
Apurva Bahadur
Auroprem Kandaswami wrote:
> Apurva,
>
> Some of the best meals I have enjoyed in my rail
> travel on IR are:
>
> Chicken Biriyani at Guntakal Junction
> (Nescafe coffee served at Guntakal is also excellent since
> a very long time)
>
> I got to taste this, while travelling by
> 6009 Mumbai-Chennai Mail for dinner.
>
> Tamarind rice / Curd rice at Renigunta. This one is really
> worth a try - definitely for all serious Vegetarians. You
> get this hot and fresh when travelling by 6012
> Madras-Dadar Express arriving Renigunta at around Noon.
> The exotic and special taste of the Andhra rice adds to
> the overall appeal of these food packets, made by SCR
> Departmental Catering, Renigunta.
>
> Another common snack which is popular on IR, at least on
> SCR to my knowledge is the Bread-Omelet served for
> breakfast.
>
> I do strongly agree with Apurva that food on Wadi-Solapur
> section is 'dry' and poor. I once had no choice but to
> crackdown a few Puris served at Kurduvadi Junction during
> dinner time on 6064 Chennai-Dadar Express, the dish
> being sold as 'Gharam Gharam Puri-Bhaji'. My teeth still
> aches when I think of this 'Taja' dish!
>
> Auro
>
> >Gang,
> >
> >Please list out the best meals and the worst meals you have had on a
> >train.
> >
> >The best food IMHO will be the trains which home at Calcutta and carry
> >the catering staff from there. I have had excellent meals in the past on
> >8001 Dn (Mumbai - Howrah mail via Nagpur) and 2859 Dn (CSTM- HWH
> >Geetanjali).
> >
> >The best meal on the run recently was on the 3003 Up Calcutta - Mumbai
> >Mail via Allahabad. Real generous servings of extremely well made food.
> >
> >The worst food you get in the Solapur - Wadi sector. Dry rice with a
> >equally dry and tasteless boiled egg (in a old newspaper). Matches the
> >dry landscape outside I guess.
> >
> >The best station food I have had in recent times is at Guntakal with
> >their superb egg curry (the meal after the dry stuff at Solapur for
> >lunch on a very late 6009 Dn Mumbai Chennai Mail).
> >
> >Please share your experiences.
> >
> >Apurva Bahadur
> >
From: sank <sank@telco.email
Subject: Re: [Fwd: [D] FW: UP Production SD90MACs at GMDD London]
Date: 20 May 1998 20:01:00 -0500
> Thought you'd like to see this note about the IR units being readied at
> GMDD, London Ontario Canada.
Just wondering: does IR still get them after the imposition of sanctions
?
Or should we have these diesels reclassified as 'humanitarian aid'.....
for desperate Indian railfans........?????
--
Jayant S : IDStudio : TTIL : ERC : TELCO
Pimpri : Pune : 411 018 : INDIA
tel - 91(212)774261 exn 2534
--
From: Apurva Bahadur <iti@giaspn01.email
Subject: Re: [Fwd: [D] FW: UP Production SD90MACs at GMDD London]
Date: 20 May 1998 22:45:00 -0500
C.L.Zeni wrote:
> Gents,
>
> Thought you'd like to see this note about the IR units being readied at
> GMDD, London Ontario Canada.
> --
> Craig Zeni - REPLY TO -->> clzeni at mindspring dot com
> <A HREF="http://www.mindspring.com/~clzeni/index.html">http://www.mindspring.com/~clzeni/index.html</A>
>
> Laugh and the world laughs with you. Cry and the world laughs louder.
>
> ------------------------------------------------------------------------
>
> Subject: [D] FW: UP Production SD90MACs at GMDD London
> Date: Tue, 19 May 1998 16:03:24 -0400>
> From: "Sarberenyi, Robert G (PBD)" <Robert.Sarberenyi@pbdir.email
> Reply-To: "Diesel Modelers Mailing List" <dlist@softpack.email
> To: "Diesel Modelers Mailing List" <dlist@softpack.email
>
> Posted on Sunday to the Foamers list was this diesel news, which I feel
> is relevant here.
>
> A friend and I discussed via e-mail the Indian Railways units at GMDD,
> commenting that they're probably receiving a newly inspired logo on the
> nose and flanks before delivery; 'a burgeoning white mushroom cloud'
> <g>!! He added, "Gee, sure hope they don't add UP's slogan 'We Will
> Deliver' to the sides".
>
Apparently we can make the big bang but we cannot (yet) deliver !
Apurva Bahadur
>
>
> Rob Sarberenyi
>
>
> Forwarded from the Foamers List with the authors permission...
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Brian Ellis [SMTP:bcellis@undergrad.email
> Sent: Sunday, May 17, 1998 8:23 PM
> To: foamers@smrn.email
> Subject: UP Production SD90MACs at GMDD London
>
> Spotted today, behind GMDD at London in full paint:
> SD90MAC: UP 8510, 8511
> SD90/43AC: UP 8274
> It looks like the Alaska Railroad SD70MACs are also being
> constructed. Out front in mostly primer was an SD70MAC with the grille
> behind the cab painted black and the grille at the rear of the diesel
> painted yellow. The fuel tank was silver or grey. Headlights on the
> nose with numberboards above the windshield.
> Export diesels for the Indian Railway were also parked out back
> in yellow paint with a white stripe in the middle.
>
> ----
> Brian Ellis
From: Apurva Bahadur <iti@giaspn01.email
Subject: Switches and Engine Indications in a WDM2
Date: 21 May 1998 00:17:00 -0500
List of Electrical switches (some are circuit breakers) in the WDM2
18379 cab (of Pune shed):
Located on the Long hood bulkhead
* CABL: Cab light breaker
* ENGRL: Engine Room Light
* DIL: Dome light switch (pronounced by a large number of drivers as
'Doom' light)
* ERF: Emergency Radiator Fan switch (forces the radiator fan to run
at the fastest speed in the event of engine overheating)
* DSC: Not very clear - something required by the maintenance crew -
the drivers do not touch it
* B/A : Battery Ammeter (Center Zero with 200 Amps graduations in the
+ & - (charge & discharge directions, Ammeter for the 72 V engine
battery.
* B/A bypass: switch used to disconnect the field of the Battery
charging generator: This causes the ammeter needle to deflect
slightly in the negative direction (discharge). Normally the
ammeter is at the zero position, i.e. the charge and discharge is
evenly matched. The negative deflection is the proof that the
battery is being positively charged in the normal position and that
is why the needle is normally seen in the zero position.
* ESD: Engine Start Lamp: Comes on when all the conditions are right
for the engine to start
* FPM: Fuel Pump Motor Breaker: Low pressure pump used to lift the
diesel from the tanks to the injectors, always running when the
loco is live
* CCM: Crankcase Exhauster motor: Used to scavenge the potentially
explosive and combustible vapour from the crank case. The discharge
of the exhauster is at a bent pipe near the fuel tank. If the CCM
is switched off, the oil leakage from the cylinder heads show up
faster as bubbles, the drivers use this 'short cut' to check a loco
before accepting charge.
* MB1: Master Breaker 1: Selects the control stand 1
* Aux: Auxiliary breaker: I wonder what this switches on ?
* MB2: Master Breaker 2: Selects the other control stand
* H/L: Breaker for the headlight 72 V, 250 Watt dual filament.
* M/T: Manual Transition switch: Allows the loco to come from series
parallel to full parallel combination when used manually, More on
this subject later
* Start: Push Button used to start the mother of all engines
* Stop: Time for shut down: The switch is held for almost 15 - 20
seconds until all the pistons stop pumping and there is sudden
silence !
* ECS: Selector switch with a handle with Idle and Run positions -
why is it required ?
* MCO: Selector switch with seven position, from left to right : CO3,
CO2, CO1, ALL IN, CO 4, CO5 and CO6. This is the motor selector
switch to isolate a defective traction motor. The normal position
is in the center - the ALL IN position.
* GR: Ground Relay: Operates when a 'Power Ground' occurs i.e. the
main generator short circuits !
* Alarm Bell: Sounds before the engine is started ( for people
working in the engine room and under the loco to clear the area)
also when there is a fault like high water temperature or
overspeed trip
Gauges located in the bulkhead:
* FOG: Fuel Oil Pressure Gauge: Normal Reading: 1 Kg/cm2
* LOP: Lube Oil Pressure Gauge: Normal Reading: 4 - 5 Kg/cm2
* Booster Pressure: This is the Turbocharger (the railways call the
Turbocharger 'booster') pressure gauge: Normal reading 1 - 1.5
Kg/cm2
One observation that I cannot explain is that when the loco is standing
and the engine is taken to the 8th Notch, the Booster Pressure gauge
does not show any reading although the engine is running at full revs.
However it shows an indication during the run even on the 4th notch. Any
explanations ?
Breakers located on the corner and the face of the control stand :
* MUSD: Multiple Unit Shut Down: Shuts down all the locos connected
in M U
* MFFB: Master Fuel Pump Breaker, help at hand to stop the engine in
a hurry ? Why are there two breakers for the Fuel pump ? Believe
me this is a design question and the drivers can only guess an
answer.
* GF: Generator Field: Actually switches the field of the Exiter
generator thus indirectly switching the main generator field.
* MCB1: Not connected in this loco but I think it is related to the
two pin power socket for a torch or a three colour
(red/green/yellow) for night signaling use
* Unmarked toggle switches for switching on the 'Classification
Lamps' i.e. the smaller lamps under the headlamp
* Rotary selector switch for the headlight: with provisions to
switch off both the headlights, to dim either or both the
headlights or to switch on both the headlights fully bright.
Dear Gang, let me have feedback whether such technical descriptions
have an audience amongst us. Many more in the offing !
Apurva Bahadur
From: Vivek Prakash <vp@ihug.email
Subject: meals on wheels
Date: 21 May 1998 14:35:00 -0500
Guntakal is famous for excellent food all-round.... It has received many
accolades from family members and friends over the years, and I can tell you
myself, I have always enjoyed the coffee there. I can remember savouring that
chicken biryani whilst travelling on the Bombay-Madras Mail when I was a kid.
Superb stuff.
The worst snack I've ever experienced is the bread omlet at Miraj. I wasn't
actually the one who ate it. I remember my father having one of these during
the wait for a connecting train to Bombay (there was no KR in those days) -
he fell sick with jaundice upon our return home, and to this day, still
blames it on that omlet!
Auroprem Kandaswami wrote:
> Apurva,
>
> Some of the best meals I have enjoyed in my rail
> travel on IR are:
>
> Chicken Biriyani at Guntakal Junction
> (Nescafe coffee served at Guntakal is also excellent since
> a very long time)
>
> I got to taste this, while travelling by
> 6009 Mumbai-Chennai Mail for dinner.
>
> Tamarind rice / Curd rice at Renigunta. This one is really
> worth a try - definitely for all serious Vegetarians. You
> get this hot and fresh when travelling by 6012
> Madras-Dadar Express arriving Renigunta at around Noon.
> The exotic and special taste of the Andhra rice adds to
> the overall appeal of these food packets, made by SCR
> Departmental Catering, Renigunta.
>
> Another common snack which is popular on IR, at least on
> SCR to my knowledge is the Bread-Omelet served for
> breakfast.
>
> I do strongly agree with Apurva that food on Wadi-Solapur
> section is 'dry' and poor. I once had no choice but to
> crackdown a few Puris served at Kurduvadi Junction during
> dinner time on 6064 Chennai-Dadar Express, the dish
> being sold as 'Gharam Gharam Puri-Bhaji'. My teeth still
> aches when I think of this 'Taja' dish!
>
> Auro
>
> >Gang,
> >
> >Please list out the best meals and the worst meals you have had on a
> >train.
> >
> >The best food IMHO will be the trains which home at Calcutta and carry
> >the catering staff from there. I have had excellent meals in the past on
> >8001 Dn (Mumbai - Howrah mail via Nagpur) and 2859 Dn (CSTM- HWH
> >Geetanjali).
> >
> >The best meal on the run recently was on the 3003 Up Calcutta - Mumbai
> >Mail via Allahabad. Real generous servings of extremely well made food.
> >
> >The worst food you get in the Solapur - Wadi sector. Dry rice with a
> >equally dry and tasteless boiled egg (in a old newspaper). Matches the
> >dry landscape outside I guess.
> >
> >The best station food I have had in recent times is at Guntakal with
> >their superb egg curry (the meal after the dry stuff at Solapur for
> >lunch on a very late 6009 Dn Mumbai Chennai Mail).
> >
> >Please share your experiences.
> >
> >Apurva Bahadur
> >
From: Apurva Bahadur <iti@giaspn01.email
Subject: Re: meals on wheels
Date: 21 May 1998 04:04:00 -0500
Vivek Prakash wrote:
> Guntakal is famous for excellent food all-round.... It has received many
> accolades from family members and friends over the years, and I can tell you
> myself, I have always enjoyed the coffee there. I can remember savouring that
> chicken biryani whilst travelling on the Bombay-Madras Mail when I was a kid.
> Superb stuff.
> The worst snack I've ever experienced is the bread omlet at Miraj. I wasn't
> actually the one who ate it. I remember my father having one of these during
> the wait for a connecting train to Bombay (there was no KR in those days) -
> he fell sick with jaundice upon our return home, and to this day, still
> blames it on that omlet!
Right on dot : Miraj has glutenous smelly meals made from unknown components.
Terrible food at Miraj. The KR still does not still work trains from Miraj. The
Miraj - Bangalore track has been 'unified' i.e. broad gauged and you still have
to wait (on some trains) to take the connecting BG train. Some trains like
1017/1018 CLAT-SBC Exp via UBL (Kurla Terminus - Bangalore Exp via Hubli) of
course run direct through.
Apurva Bahadur
>
>
> Auroprem Kandaswami wrote:
>
> > Apurva,
> >
> > Some of the best meals I have enjoyed in my rail
> > travel on IR are:
> >
> > Chicken Biriyani at Guntakal Junction
> > (Nescafe coffee served at Guntakal is also excellent since
> > a very long time)
> >
> > I got to taste this, while travelling by
> > 6009 Mumbai-Chennai Mail for dinner.
> >
> > Tamarind rice / Curd rice at Renigunta. This one is really
> > worth a try - definitely for all serious Vegetarians. You
> > get this hot and fresh when travelling by 6012
> > Madras-Dadar Express arriving Renigunta at around Noon.
> > The exotic and special taste of the Andhra rice adds to
> > the overall appeal of these food packets, made by SCR
> > Departmental Catering, Renigunta.
> >
> > Another common snack which is popular on IR, at least on
> > SCR to my knowledge is the Bread-Omelet served for
> > breakfast.
> >
> > I do strongly agree with Apurva that food on Wadi-Solapur
> > section is 'dry' and poor. I once had no choice but to
> > crackdown a few Puris served at Kurduvadi Junction during
> > dinner time on 6064 Chennai-Dadar Express, the dish
> > being sold as 'Gharam Gharam Puri-Bhaji'. My teeth still
> > aches when I think of this 'Taja' dish!
> >
> > Auro
> >
> > >Gang,
> > >
> > >Please list out the best meals and the worst meals you have had on a
> > >train.
> > >
> > >The best food IMHO will be the trains which home at Calcutta and carry
> > >the catering staff from there. I have had excellent meals in the past on
> > >8001 Dn (Mumbai - Howrah mail via Nagpur) and 2859 Dn (CSTM- HWH
> > >Geetanjali).
> > >
> > >The best meal on the run recently was on the 3003 Up Calcutta - Mumbai
> > >Mail via Allahabad. Real generous servings of extremely well made food.
> > >
> > >The worst food you get in the Solapur - Wadi sector. Dry rice with a
> > >equally dry and tasteless boiled egg (in a old newspaper). Matches the
> > >dry landscape outside I guess.
> > >
> > >The best station food I have had in recent times is at Guntakal with
> > >their superb egg curry (the meal after the dry stuff at Solapur for
> > >lunch on a very late 6009 Dn Mumbai Chennai Mail).
> > >
> > >Please share your experiences.
> > >
> > >Apurva Bahadur
> > >
From: Apurva Bahadur <iti@giaspn01.email
Subject: Transitions of a WDM2
Date: 21 May 1998 05:52:00 -0500
Amongst the list of the idiosyncrasies of our beloved Alco WDM 2 is the
'zhatka' or jerk during acceleration.
As the loco is accelerating, all of a sudden the power cuts off for a
fraction of a second and then picks up again. This happens at typically
39 Kmph. The jerk can often be felt over the entire train specially if
accelerating up a slope.
I remember I was way in the middle of the 1028 Up Kashi Express and I
could feel it in the coach. This was many moons ago and then I really
had no explanation for it. Now I do, Here goes:
When the loco starts from stand still all the traction motors are in
Series Parallel. As the loco accelerates the control system switches the
combination to full parallel in so many steps to allow the motors to
accelerate.
0 - 29 Kmph - Series Parallel
29 - 39 Kmph - Series Parallel Shunt
39 - 80 Kmph - Parallel
80 + Parallel Shunt
Thus as the loco changes from Series Parallel Shunt to Full Parallel the
Generator output is cut and the fuel to the engine is momentarily
stopped to reduce the flashing on the switch gear and strain on the
drive train.
Shunt position is also known as 'weak field' position, where a resistor
is placed across the windings to reduce their resistance and increase
the amount of current that can flow.
Now sometimes the driver thinks it is appropriate to allow this
transition to come earlier so as to pick up speed faster. In that case
he shouts for his assistant to 'M.T.' (Manual Transition) and the asst.
switches the Toggle switch on the Long Hood bulkhead and the loco jerks
instantly.
The other transitions cannot be felt at all in the loco.
If the 'M.T.' switch has been operated and the loco has subsequently
stopped, then the MT toggle switch has to be brought back to the normal
position before starting once again. If the toggle remains in the
'M.T.' position, then the loco is very lethargic with very poor pickup.
In fact I have been told that if the switch remains on in the 'M.T.'
position then the main generator gets overloaded and has actually burnt
out in a couple cases in the Pune shed. There was a period when this MT
switch was outlawed and a wire was inserted through the switch dolly to
prevent it being used (railway pidgin - it was 'dummied'). But
apparently now the drivers have learnt to use the MT effectively and the
locking wire has been removed on all the Pune locos.
One more observation: the Gooty (GY) locos the motoring / braking lever
used for selecting the degree of dynamic brakes has motoring 1, 2 and 3
positions. The drivers explain that this is akin to the gears in a car
and helps to get the transition faster. In the Pune locos the Motoring /
braking lever has been 'dummied' with the same locking wire in the so it
cannot be moved beyond the Motoring 1 position.
Contribute your valuable opinions, Gang !
Apurva Bahadur
From: Apurva Bahadur <iti@giaspn01.email
Subject: Re: Switches and Engine Indications in a WDM2
Date: 21 May 1998 08:53:00 -0500
Hi Satish,
Thanks for your kind comments, they encourage me a lot !
I have photos too of my last footplate trip to Karad two weeks back, but I am
worried about how a railway official is going to react to our breaking all
these iron clad rules. I am sitting on the fence about putting up these photos.
I guess I will smudge the photos once they are scanned to hide all sort of
identifiable details.
Thanks once again
Apurva Bahadur
S Pai wrote:
> > Dear Gang, let me have feedback whether such technical descriptions
> > have an audience amongst us. Many more in the offing !
>
> Apurva, these technical descriptions are certainly very welcome. Please
> continue posting more information of this kind whenever you can. Don't
> mistake silence on the list as indicative of lack of interest!! Ever since
> I have been on IRFCA (many years now), it has always been the case that a
> few folks (less than half a dozen) carry on the interesting conversations,
> and most others "lurk" and chip in only once in a while. But they're all
> railfans to greater or lesser degrees and are on the list because they love
> this stuff. So keep it coming! A lot of folks (like myself) may not have
> access to the kind of technical information that you are posting, so we may
> not be able to comment on it, but we're certainly very interested in
> learning about it.
>
> Thanks for your posts, and best regards.
>
> -Satish
From: Apurva Bahadur <iti@giaspn01.email
Subject: Re: Upper Quadrant signalling system
Date: 21 May 1998 09:20:00 -0500
Donald,
Please send all the letters about Indian Railways stuff to
<irfca@cs.email
so that all the members (including me) receive it as a routine. Write to
me
only if it is meant only for me alone. In this way a lot of other Indian
Railway
enthusiasts can correspond with you. A cc stands for carbon copy ,
surely you
know that ? Okay, send a mail immediately to Anurag Acharya
<irfca-request@cs.email to
enroll in the mailing list and join the gang !
Looking forward to seeing you on the mailing list,
Apurva Bahadur
Donald L. Mills, Jr wrote:
> Apurva, I am ignorant about computers as you have probably guessed by now.
> I am lucky to get to you. What is cc. my initial vocabulary is really
> bad.By the way I mentioned the lottery. One of the commuter Railroads in
> Philadephia added an extra five runs so that people in Pennsylvania could
> go to Deleware to play. Just goes to show there is money to be made if you
> have someone up top on the ball.
>
From: Apurva Bahadur <iti@giaspn01.email
Subject: Re: Upper Quadrant signalling system
Date: 21 May 1998 19:11:00 -0500
Donald,
Thanks for your interest in Indian Railways. I think I will take some time to
answer, in the meanwhile I will forward this message on the IRFCA so others may
also respond to you. Why don't you write to me and also send a cc to the IRFCA
<irfca@cs.email so many others may learn about your views ? They would be
very welcome !
Apurva Bahadur
Donald L. Mills, Jr wrote:
> Do you not have any tourist lines utilizing steam. what about the toy
> train in the mountains I saw on television. Does anyone in India ever run
> excursions. Your country is so beautiful just imagine the tourist
> potential. Maybe someone over there will look to China and purchase one.
> I've heard they still utilize them on branch service. I am very ignorant on
> diesels. I have to look under the cab window to see if it is an SD-GP or
> C40-. Forgive my ignorance. Hope you manage (with a miracle) somehow to
> save those engines. Personal project is to visit your country just to
> ride rails. Pray that I win the lottery, that will be the only way it
> could happen. Over here in the US thats the big thing today. The lottery
> is up to 150 million and expected to top 200. I think I might be able to
> live on that a day or two, what do you think. I might even be able to buy
> a small Railroad. Ha Ha. Of course, my chances of winning are like a
> snowball staying solid in the hottest parts of India.
> Don in WV
>
> ----------
> > From: Apurva Bahadur <iti@giaspn01.email
> > To: Donald L. Mills, Jr <dmills@MARSHALL.email Indian Railways Info Zone
> <irfca@cs.email
> > Subject: Re: Upper Quadrant signalling system
> > Date: Tuesday, May 19, 1998 11:13 PM
> >
> > Donald,
> > Our railways has already destroyed all the steam locos there are. I am
> now
> > thinking whether the railways would have the willingness to preserve the
> > first and second generation electric (specially DC electrics) and diesels
> > (specially the meter gauge diesels and the DL500 - WDM1).
> >
> > Apurva Bahadur
> >
> > Donald L. Mills, Jr wrote:
> >
> > > In West Virginia, we just saw the video on India Rails and it showed
> the
> > > very things you are describing. It sounded great. Unfortunately, it
> also
> > > showed the destruction of many of your steam engines. I hope your
> > > railroads are not as stupid as ours and destroy them all. Don
> > >
> > > ----------
> > > > From: Apurva Bahadur <iti@giaspn01.email
> > > > To: IRIZ <irfca@cs.email
> > > > Subject: Upper Quadrant signalling system
> > > > Date: Tuesday, May 19, 1998 4:10 AM
> > > >
> > > > Observations of the Pune Karad Footplate ride:
> > > >
> > > > The single line from Pune(PA) to Kolhapur(KOP) via Miraj (MRJ)
> > > > has the Oil lamp lit upper quadrant semaphore system. The 'token'
> for
> > > > the 'route relay interlock' consist of a metal ball which must be
> > > > carried in the loco as a permission to enter a section. In case the
> > > > train is 'passing through' meaning not stopping at the station, the
> > > > assistant driver puts on a thick arm protector and leans out of the
> > > > loco. One of the station staff carries the token in a reed and
> leather
> > > > hoop about two feet in diameter. The assistant driver in one rapid
> move
> > > > drops the older token and picks up the fresh token from this man
> > > > standing on the ground. Then the assistant driver shows the green
> flag
> > > > to the station master as well as honks the horn to indicate a good
> 'pick
> > > > up'. Then he shouts the token number along with the section name to
> the
> > > > driver who enters it in his log. The token is picked up in the
> night
> > > > in the same way, except the man from the station also carriers a
> flaming
> > > > kerosene soaked rag to indicate his position in the night.
> > > > The overwhelming concern on the footplate was the early sighting
> of
> > > > signals. The drivers really stained to 'sight' the signals much
> before
> > > > the appearance of the 'sighting board'. The 'sighting board' is a
> > > > rectangular board with one circle and horizontal lines above and
> below
> > > > it. This board has fluorescent tape or reflectors for use in the
> night.
> > > > It is from the 'sighting board' that the signal should be easily
> > > > visible. But the drivers could spot the 'distant' or 'home' signals
> from
> > > > a much earlier distance. It is amazing to see the drivers agreeing
> with
> > > > each other 'distant caution' or 'home caution -road one' where my
> > > > untrained eyes could not see anything at all in the back ground
> foliage
> > > > and rocks. Not only the drivers 'sighted' the signals, while
> shouting
> > > > the aspect of the signal to each other in the 80 dB footplate noise,
> > > > they also raised their palms to mimic the aspect of the signal with
> > > > their fingers. One interesting term I heard was 'Distant - Forty
> Five' -
> > > > the angle of the distant signal - it the 'attention' mode. Similarly
> > > > there was 'Advanced starter Ninety' - Proceed at full speed !
> > > > The 'Distant' signal (Yellow coloured with a fish tail notch) can be
> > > > 'on' (Horizontal - next signal is red), or at Attention (45 degrees
> up -
> > > > next signal is clear). 'Attention' is the semaphore equivalent of
> > > > 'double yellow', there is a separate yellow lamp which gets uncovered
> > > > during 'attention' to light up 'double yellow' in the night.
> > > > The 'Home' signal (Red with white bands before the platform) can
> be
> > > > 'on' (Horizontal - Do not cross), at Caution ( 45 degrees, can cross
> but
> > > > next signal is not clear) or 'Proceed' (fully vertical - proceed at
> full
> > > > speed).
> > > > The Home signal also serves as route indicator. There are would be
> three
> > > > home signals if the station has one main track and two 'loop'
> platform
> > > > tracks. The track nearest to the station master's cabin is the 'Road
> > > > One'. Thus out of the three home signals, the appropriate signal
> would
> > > > indicate in which directions the points are set.
> > > > Just after the platform is the 'Starter' signal (Red with white
> > > > bands). This can be 'On' (Horizontal - Do not cross) or at Caution
> (45
> > > > degrees - cross with speed restriction).
> > > > Once the platform is cleared we come across the 'Advanced Starter'
> > > > which can be either On (Horizontal) or Proceed (Fully Vertical).
> > > > There is also a gate signal indicating that the level crossing gate
> is
> > > > closed.
> > > >
> > > > Apurva Bahadur
> > > >
> > > >
> >
> >
> >
> >
From: Siddhartha Joshi <siddha@cyberspace.email
Subject: Re: Upper Quadrant signalling system
Date: 21 May 1998 01:18:00 -0500
The Darjeeling Himalayan Railroad or the Toy Train is very much in
service. After it was declared a world heritage railway, there are no
fears about its future. What we are waiting for is a decision on the
locomotoves that are used on that section. The railways were thinking of
going in for oil-fired steam locos or narrow gauge diesels.
Siddhartha.
From: Philippe Quiot (TOG Devt. SA) <tog-sa@he.email
Subject: Y- rated stuff
Date: 21 May 1998 18:23:00 -0500
Hello,
You may find a drawing of YP at
<A HREF="http://www.bahnhofplatz.com/p/y_rated/yp_00.jpg">http://www.bahnhofplatz.com/p/y_rated/yp_00.jpg</A>
Scanned from original NER drawing...
--
===================================================================
TOG Devt. S.A. "IXpert" Philippe QUIOT
CH - 1092 Belmont tog-sa@he.email
internet/intranet consulting ( )
___ ____________ ( _ )
_________|___||____________| _____ | |
| [ ] |[ ] |___||___|_____|____|_|__|-|
______|__________[__] |[_____] |---------//-\\----|-----|
[ ] | |________//___\\ | )
[ Px48 ] | | | (________)\\__|_____|
[_____________________]==|_________|-|----/-\----/ -\--___\\|-
|=| ====== ====== |_________|_| - / - \ /-----(___)\\=|=|
| (O)(O) (O)(O) (O)-(O) /(O)-(O)/ |
===================================================================
"Times of Glory" trade/consulting in railway/travel/tourism areas
tog@bahnhofplatz.email
<A HREF="http://www.bahnhofplatz.com/">http://www.bahnhofplatz.com/</A>
From: Donald L. Mills, Jr <dmills@MARSHALL.email
Subject: Excursions
Date: 21 May 1998 06:45:00 -0500
Does IR have special excursions? If anyone has steam anywhere in India
they could be making some money by providing these trips for special
occassions or religious holidays, etc... What about looking into purchasing
one from China for such a purpose? IR could do as the Union Pacific does
here and establish its own fleet of steam so that it could run excursions
over areas of the line. Norfolk-Souhern RR used to do it in my area of
the country until people started suing over the smallest details causing
the insurance companies to go through the roof. Now RR's just use the
liability clause to get out of running them unless one can get Amtrak,
which always means diesels. Do you have small branch lines? (Independent of
IR) maybe they could benefit. Do you have any in parks or museums that
could be restored to running order? I hope that somewhere you have someone
in a national museum or organization that can utilize either an oral or
written response system so that the know how is not lost. It might be an
excellent idea to run as many as possible because you still have so many
people who miss the old steam engines many of them young. Keep the idea
fresh in their minds so to speak. (I know you probably are doing this
somewhere already, so ignore me if I tend to rattle on) Do you have
railfan groups all over India,? Railfans are some of the best friends rail
companies can have. They also provide a great sourse of information. Such
groups as this one are invaluable and tend to like the trains better than
many who work for the lines. Hope all is well. Write whenever possible.
From: Apurva Bahadur <iti@giaspn01.email
Subject: Names of Freight Trains
Date: 22 May 1998 02:56:00 -0500
Hello Gang !
Does anyone have an idea how the freight trains are named or numbered ?
They have really strange names like Ahmedabad 10, or Bombay 21 or India
8 !
Apparently the first formation out of a marshaling yard after 0 hours
(railway guys call it 'odd' hours) is called with a name starting with A
and so forth. If that freight train is broken up at some other yard and
regrouped then it assumes a new name as per that yard's convention. Any
one with a clearer idea ?
The 'super' freight trains out of Mumbai (on the CR) are the Shalimar
special to Shalimar Yard in Calcutta and the Salt Coutours special to
Chennai. These formations have a special privilege as they carry
guaranteed delivery goods.
I just read in an older issue of the Indian Railway mag that the
heaviest freight in India is 4700 Tonnes and is hauled by a single WAG 9
in Dhanbad Division.
Apurva Bahadur
From: Apurva Bahadur <iti@giaspn01.email
Subject: Push pull trains
Date: 22 May 1998 03:55:00 -0500
Gang !
Reviving and older debate about Push Pull trains v/s EMUs.
Sundar Krishanmurthy mentioned a Chennai - Tirupati Push pull with a WAG
5 at the Chennai end of the train. Yes I have seen this train too. If I
am not mistaken, then I saw another of these push pulls in the same
sector.
Similar push pulls can be seen between Wardha and Nagpur.
Why not the regular EMUs instead of the Push Pull Trains ?
The regular EMU is 12 feet wide and cannot go everywhere due to
restrictive clearances. The Push Pull with a regular 10'8" width can go
in all the places. The DC EMUs at Pune can never cross the road bridge
at the Daund end of the platform except on platform 1 & 7 due to the
same reason.
Also the low platforms in the rural areas cannot be served by the
standard EMU which has no steps at the door, only a push pull can allow
passengers to alight onto low or NO platforms (like Majri Budruk halt
between Daund and Pune which totally lacks a platform) .
These WAG 5 hauled push pulls are a short term measure just as the WDM2
hauled push pulls seen all over the country (Bandra, Diva, Hubli, etc
etc !).
ICF has come up with a 'proper' MEMU (main line EMU) with standard
width, stepped doors and superb acceleration and braking (but with no
toilets !) for precisely this semi rural yet electrified routes.
I have seen these MEMUs on the Asansol - Calcutta leg and I know they
work in the New Delhi - Panipat Route also.
The loco hauled Push Pull trains are coaches usually modified by local
carriage and wagon works and hence lacks any factory finish or a well
designed aesthetic sense. The gang in the C&W normally go overboard with
their ideas about streamlining, location of windscreens and a gaudy
paint job.
Apurva Bahadur