Climbing the "Monkey Hill" Sholingur Trip.

Ramki and Pawan posing near the Temple Tank at Sholingur.


August 9th, 2008.

Plan:
1. Boarding local train from Saidapet to Guindy at around 06:00hrs
2. Taking 103SR Pondicherry Passenger from Guindy till Chengalpet.
3. Arokkonam Passenger from Chengalpet to Arokkonam.
4. Arokkonam to Sholinghur by bus to visit the Narasimha temple on top of hill.
5. Return by bus from Sholingur to Arokkonam.
6. Then board any of the Chennai Central bound Express trains or EMU back to Chennai.

But God had different plans that day. The plans went for a big six!

Morning: 0515hrs

It was still dark, I used the torchlight in my mobile phone and moved with caution taking care not to disturb sleeping dogs in the dark. I moved at sub walking speed. Slowly, I pulled out of my street and I came near the Adyar Canal. I visualized a T/P and started walking fast. (For non-rail fans, T/P indicates termination of caution order and means that the train can now move fast).

I boarded a 23C to reach Saidapet. While on bus, I called Ramki. No response! Has he slept off? I reached Saidapet a bit early and boarded an EMU to Guindy Railway Station. Pawan joined me at Guindy. And we waited for Ramki to arrive. I had my own doubts. I had the feeling that Ramki might have slept.


Chengalpet Lake. Pic taken from 103 Egmore-Pondicherry Passenger which stopped at Chengalpet outer.

As guessed, Ramki has slept. He got up at 06:15hrs and came directly to GDY around 06:50hrs just a few minutes before 103SR arrived at Guindy. I had purchased the tickets earlier for him so he came to the platform directly. AJJ WAM-4#21275 was the power for my train 103SR. The LP’s were in an aggressive mood. The train entered the platform at a high speed like an EMU. We started from GDY on time, but we had some caution orders so we slowed down. At St. Thomas Mount, my train slowed down, as there was a caution order of 15kmph and we crawled through the station. I could observe a couple of young women walking near the tracks. As WAM-4 honked, they shut their ears and closed their eyes. They got afraid of WAM-4’s honk. I guess that they were going to work. I was happy to see India progressing. Women are now coming out of houses and actively participating in world events. With one more week, for the nation’s Independence Day, I really thought, India women have really attained freedom.

After St. Thomas Mount, my train started accelerating. With horns blaring, my train blasted through the sub-urban stations. I took care to see that Ramki and Pawan didn’t stand near the door. I was nearly 5 years senior to them and it was my duty to take care of them especially Ramki. While crossing Perungalathur, WDM-3D#11201 came with 2634 CAPE-MS Kanya Kumari Express. Near Urapakkam, Ramki spotted WDP-3A#15504 with 2662 Pothigai Express. Near Kattangulathur, we saw twin WAG-5’s 23126+23122 with a good’s rake standing in the loop line and we overtook it. Awesome scenario! Just visualize as I say. Dark clouds, immediate threats of rains, not much of light, little bit of moisture in the air, with little grass near the tracks.


View from Sholingur Hill.

I am a fan of such locations and sceneries. My train reached Chengalpet on time. Since Pawan has visited Sholingur many times, he instantly volunteered to purchase tickets. I could have purchased a ticket to Arokkonam via Chengalpet, but I didn't do that. I wonder why? That cost me the entire trip! I assumed that a ticket to AJJ wouldn't be available via CGL and I thought that 15 minutes time would be enough to purchase another ticket. We waited in the platform as Pawan went and stood in the queue. The queue was very long. We still had 15 minutes. Here comes the most ill fated moment of the trip. Pawan was given the task of getting for the journey between Chengalpet and Arokkonam. The lady clerk at the booking counter told that such a train doesn't exist and she can't give a ticket. Pawan argued that the train did exist and pointed to the locomotive, which was ready to haul the train. It was a TNP WDM-2. The Lady clerk asked him to inquire with the Loco-pilot and asked him to come directly avoiding the queue. Pawan believed this word and came out of the queue. I told Pawan that she must be new or a transfer to this section, so I asked Pawan to go back and get the tickets. Pawan directly approached the booking clerk. Pretending as if she hasn’t seen him before, she asked him to come in the queue. The queue was very big. If we had stood in the queue it would take more time and we would be missing the train. Pawan got worried and called me and as I neared the queue the crowd got a bit upset.

When I reached the queue, the public thought I was wasting time and they were more eager to purchase their own tickets as Guruvayur Express would be arriving at CGL in another half an hour. No one was willing to listen to us. Then I went to the booking clerk room entrance and from there I asked her along with Pawan. She blasted at me asking whether I can understand 'Tamizh' and whether I had common sense.

Grrr! Grr! Grr!! Praang. The engine was ready to start. I knew it’s useless talking to her. Suddenly, the loco made a typical diesel engine noise deafening everyone. I felt as if Lord Narasimha was going to come out of the engine to punish this lady clerk. But sadly, only a dark cloud of smoke came out. Charcoal was applied on my face.

She must be in her 50's. She was elder to me. I did think of complaining to the Station Master but I didn't want her to lose her job. I know how tough it is to get a job. Having good marks, certifications, I suffered for a proper job for more than 1and a half years. I felt that I should downplay this incident and I tried my best to overcome my anger. I didn't want to hit on her daily food. In life there are lot of people who use words without measuring the impact it creates. But I can't be reacting to everything. Rather, I would ignore it. Her family might be reliant on her. Why to show my anger on her? The world is moving towards peace.

TNP WDM-2#17750 honked and started with the Arokkonam Passenger. The loco honked again. I thought that locomotive was quite happy with the decision I have made now. I have missed a train for the first time in my life! But I have learnt an important lesson in life. Self Control! I learn many things with the Indian Railways. If life could be so tough, my beloved engines are there to teach me. I could have gone to Arokkonam from Chennai Central but the plan was to take the Chengalpet-Arokkonam route which is a single line section. I have doing MAS-AJJ loads of time and it could be boring!

We had no options now than opting for bus. We went to Chengalpet Bus Stand and boarded a bus to Kanchipuram. The bus went near the train track for almost the entire length of the journey. We saw GOC WDM-2#17750 with Tirupati-Pondicherry Passenger somewhere before Kanchipuram. We got down at Kanchipuram. Had our breakfast at Kanchipuram(CJ). Onion Dosas and Poori Masala. Yummmy!!! Spicy Food!

Then we boarded a bus to Arokkonam. This journey was the slowest one. The bus was moving slow and never went above 35kmph average. By this time, we would have been in Arokkonam if we had taken the train. I could observe electrification terminating after Takkolam station. I could also see the Air Force Base near Takkolam. The section between Takkolam and Arokkonam is not electrified due to the Air Force base. Mumbai-Nagercoil Express takes this route and it bypasses Chennai. We boarded another bus at Arokkonam to reach Sholingur.



View from Sholingur Hill

The Sholinghur hill was 1/3 of the Tirupati Hill in my opinion. Approximately, 1350steps. We decided to climb in a typical rail fan style. We were warned of monkeys in advance. We purchased wooden sticks below to shoo away the monkeys, while Pawan purchased all necessary items for pooja. We started to climb in a railfan way. Ramki (WAP-4) was the lead loco, Pawan was the coach and I was the banker(WAG-7). Cracking jokes we started climbing the hill. Calling out CO’s, virtual signals, signs, aspects we started with our train. For sometime I decided to forget the so called professionalism and I tried my best to mingle with the teenage generation. I was in the rear and Ramki was leading. Pawan was being escorted. The reason was monkeys over here were known for snatching up anything from devotees. Coconut, chocolates, flowers, plastic bags. We negotiated a couple of curves and started accelerating up hill. Shared jokes. Monkeys were all around us. I felt like climbing Monkey Hill.

We were soon attacked by Monkeys. One of the monkeys came near Pawan and caught hold of his wooden stick. I wondered what was wrong. All pooja items were kept safely in the backpack. What did this monkey desire for? Aah! It seems Pawan took out his Polo roll. The mint with the hole. The monkey was eagerly asking for it and was showing out its hand. Pawan got afraid. Meanwhile, Ramki and myself started running away leaving Pawan alone with the monkey. For a moment, our imaginary train parted. Now the banker(myself) was in the front, followed by Ramki(lead loco). And what about our load Pawan? He was fighting with the monkey. It was loads of fun when Pawan pleaded with the monkey to leave him.

He then threw the Polo and the monkey went in search of it. Later, Pawan slammed us for leaving him. This incident is something similar to that of the Loco-Pilot and the Asst.Loco-Pilot jumping out of the engine after finding a pack of monkeys inside the locomotive. We were gasping for breath and laughing too. We sat and took rest for around 15 minutes thinking about the funny incident.

Sholingur Temple Gopuram.

If you associate your life with the Indian Railways, life could be so easy. We climbed further and atlast after nearly 50 minutes of climbing we reached the top. After seeing the deity we took some rest and started our descent. This time a monkey came near Ramki and started holding his T-shirt. After Ramki pleaded, the monkey left him. Now everyone felt that monkeys would target me next. A couple of them came near me, but didn’t do anything. We decided to go in bunches. So we waited and formed a group of 10. But monkeys being our ancestors were smarter than us. I could observe a bunch of 10 monkeys waiting for us in the next bend. They were also forming a battalion. Funny! One of them had a stick in its hand.


A monkey performs acrobatic stunts. I didn't take much photographs fearing the monkeys would snatch the camera mobile from me.

And by 15:30hrs we had climbed down the hill. We boarded a bus to Arokkonam. There was an EMU ready to depart to Chennai Beach. Ramki would be going to Saidapet, myself till Chennai Beach and Pawan was to get down at Perambur. Then I would board an MRTS EMU to Kasturibai Nagar at Chennai Beach. That was the return plan.

My EMU halted at all stations. It was a boring return journey in my opinion. EMU's could be boring. WAP-4#22646 was spotted with an outgoing express near Puliya Mangalam. WAP-4#22580 was the power for Trivandrum Express and was spotted at Tiruvallur. WAG-5#23479 was seen hauling a BCNA rake near Putlur. Twin WAG-5#23899+23769 hauled a BCNA rake near Hindu College. Raining WAG-5’s!! 23483+23426 was seen near Avadi hauling a loaded coal rake. I was feeling tired. I have done big trips, but for this trip I felt tiredness. Ramki and Pawan were still raring to go. I took my seat and decided to take rest while the young boys stood near the door. I was a bit worried, but I monitored them regularly. While Kacheguda Express was spotted in the distance, Ramki even called me to the door. But I preferred to take rest.

AJJ WAM-4#20549 ripped past us with 7651 MS-KCG Express as our EMU halted at Annanur. Near Villivakkam, I came to the door and waited to spot the evening Shatabdi to SBC. It was hauled by WAP-1#22010. Pawan got down at Perambur. My train reached Vyasarpadi Jeeva Jn and then took the line towards Chennai Beach. Instead of getting down at Central, I was to get down at Beach and from there I can easily board an EMU to Kasturibai Nagar. My EMU went via Washermanpet, Royapuram and then reached MSB. I bid goodbye to Ramki and then I boarded an EMU to Kasturibai Nagar. I reached my house at 1845hrs. My adopted dog Damien was waiting for me near the house gates.

-Krishna Kumar.S

Madurai revisited after 15 years-Part I

Meenakshi Amman/Goddess Parvati. Note the characteristic parrot on Her shoulder.


I visited Madurai in May 2008 to attend the reception and wedding of SR's Senior Loco-Pilot's daughter. I accompanied Vimalakar and Poochi Venkat. As usual, just like other big trips, I entered into the trip at the last moment. I had just finished graduation and I was having some personal work, but I decided to join Vimal and Poochi for this trip. I boarded a local EMU to Fort from Kasturibai Nagar around 05:30hrs and at Fort I boarded another local towards Egmore. While I was entering Egmore, I could see 103SR Pondicherry Fast Passenger leaving with a WDM-3D. I was quite far away, so couldn’t note the numbers, but I know it was a WDM-3D.

I waited for Vimal to come from Pazhavanthangal(PZA). I had no cameras. Not even mobile. My mobile failed and I was going without a mobile for a major trip. Around 06:45hrs Vimal came to MS. Vimal and myself enquired in the enquiry counter and got the confirmed location of our seat. Since we booked it at the last moment our tickets were waitlisted. Vimalakar somehow managed to get it confirmed. Thanks Vimal. Vimal and myself were in the 3rd coach from the last while my friend Poochi Venkat was in the front end of the train and was traveling in 3AC. We didn't meet Poochi before departure, but we met him only after reaching Madurai.

We had breakfast at VLR, Egmore. I noticed that Egmore VLR was inaugurated on my birthday!! 27th July, 1986. Even the year was same! I was a bit surprised. My friend Dilip has noticed this many times and have told me earlier, but I saw this for the first time only now. I saw WAP-4#22548 coming with 2632 Nellai Express. I saw WDP-3A#15504 with 2638 Pandian Express. What happened to the usual KJM WDP-4 link? Why was it missing? Has it failed? The answer came after an hour. Keep reading. Vimal and myself were conversing in a rail man’s language. A man in Loco-Pilot uniform was observing us. He had a hidden smile in his face. He understood that we are rail fans.

We got WAP-4#22618 till Villupuram. The power was actually noted by Aravind from South Cabin(Aravind's Saidapet residence) and later he informed us through SMS. Aravind is quite lucky to have his house near the tracks! I got the aisle seat. I was wondering whether I would enjoy the trip because I haven't got a window seat. My train was accelerating fast and was doing good speed even before crossing Nungambakkam. Vimal said that it could be WDM-3D (before starting). I said that it gets a WAP-4 till VM. As we crossed Mambalam, we both came to the conclusion that it should be a WAP-4 because of the pickup but still Vimal had his own doubts. I was a bit optimistic that it was a WAP-4. As my train neared Saidapet, I came to one of the free window seats and waved at Aravind who was waving out to us from his balcony. He was also coming to Madurai, but he was boarding the evening Kanya Kumari Express along with Gowri Sankar and Seshu sir. We would be attending both the marriage and the reception and they would be attending only the marriage.

I forget all tensions in life when I am with the railways. All the engines have been good supportive Comrades and whenever I am down they have let their invisible hands over my shoulders to support my mild burdens of life. I feel lucky. I am one of the luckiest persons in this world. The reason is that God has given me a medicine for tensions(if there is any?). I forget everything in life when I see a fast express train thundering past me. The exact reason of why I got this strange love for machines is still a mystery. These iron horses are my brothers and sisters! And ofcourse you! You are also precious to me.


Lord Vishnu gives away the bride to Lord Shiva(groom). Lord Vishnu plays the role of a responsible brother.

Praang!!! What was that?

It was 2694 Pearl City tearing near Palavanthangal. Vimal commented that the train was doing great speed hauled by a WDM-2. He felt even our WAP-4 was running slightly slow when compared to Pearl City. Then I saw 7614 RMM-MS Sethu Express tearing across my train. Then came the news.

The news was that WDP-4 hauling Pandian had failed near VM. At VM, Pandian got its loco changed to WDP-3A class. The failed WDP-4 was later attached to 6116 PDY-MS Express and was hauled by an AJJ WAP-1. I spotted that train near Singa Perumal Koil. Infact, it was Vimal who spotted the WDP-4. Unfortunately, he couldn't note the dippy number. I sent a message to Aravind saying that "your favourit dippy has failed". Aravind in an SMS later confirmed this and even sent an SMS to Chennai gang saying "Sad News: Dippy kutty has failed".

Vimal and myself then got busy with our talks. We talked about US invasion of Iraq and how Jihadis and Taliban arose? Lots of facts! Blah Blah.. We do talk rail stuffs, but too much of train stuffs could be boring. WAG-7#27492 Erode shed loco was spotted at Melmaruvathur. It had taken the loop, giving us the preference. The run between Melmaruvathur and Tindivanam was too good. We had a halt at Tindivanam. Vimal went for a short nap. We were put in loop at Mailam for about 10 minutes. This was where my train lost precious time.

It halted for more than 10 minutes!! AJJ WAP-4#22603 SUPER MONSTER came in with 2606 TPJ-MS Pallavan Super Fast Express. It was too fast and the train was doing MPS. Horns blaring! But Vimalakar was still sleeping! We reached Villupuram some 15 mins late. We had a loco change. Since we were in the 22nd coach, we didn't make any efforts to go to the front. From here, twin WDM-2's took over the job of hauling the train as beyond Villupuram there is no electrification. I got down and bought veg-briyani packets and water bottles. Charismatic curves, village type sceneries awaited me. For the first time in my life, I was to do a section beyond VM in daylight. I have done this route earlier, but not during the day!

For some unknown reason, my train halted for more than 10 minutes at Villupuram. We started at VM at around 1050hrs. The train negotiated a long curve before Kandambakkam. The train's pickup was too good. Guess what? We got twin WDM-2#16883 with 16882 leading the way. For every notch, both locos were equally synchronized and they let out puffs of smoke at the same time. Treat! Excellent performance. The acceleration was too good. It was a treat for the eyes to watch such scenes. We were put on loop at Ulundurpet, a small wayside station after Villupuram. I could see that already WDP-3A#15533 was in loop with a passenger.

It was the Madurai-Villupuram passenger. Sluggard! He takes 12 hours to do 334km I guess. The great thing was I was to return by this train a couple of days later!! Keep reading. That was one of my best slow passenger journeys in my life.

I wondered when we would reach Madurai. Delayed by an hour? As I wondered, KJM WDP-4#200xx came with 2636 Vaigai Express and crossed us. It seems that Vaigai has already arrived at UDL and was waiting at the outer. After Vaigai crossed, my train was given clearance. Then came small stations like Parikkal, Puvanur(??) and Meppuliyur. Parikkal reminded me of the Narasimha Temple. We blasted through those stations. My train entered Virudhachalam Jn, at least 45mins late. Poochi Venkat called Vimal and said that the train was at least 40-50mins late. Poochi was wondering why I wasn't updating the gang through SMS using distribution list? Sad, no one knew that my mobile was down!

I could observe the lines towards Salem and Cuddalore Port at VRI. Electrification was in progress in the Villupuram-Tiruchi section. After Virudhachalam our next halt was Ariyalur. We did manage to compensate for lost time. Poochi called us again and told that we would be reaching on time due as there was good amount of buffer in timetables. We had a scheduled short halt at Sri Rangam too. Nagercoil-Mumbai Express crossed us near SRGM (Sri Rangam). We reached Tiruchi 30 minutes late. I bought Sambar Rice and Curd Rice. Vimal got busy with Curd Rice while I got busy with Sambar rice. After having it, I opened the Fanta bottle. Vimal personally requested not to have soft drinks after having masala stuffs. It causes acidity or stomach problems. I decided to follow with his advice. Well-he is elder to me!


The next section was a very interesting one. TPJ-MDU. It involved scenic mountains, curves and lonely stations. Given a chance I would build a small house here and settle for good and do farming. The fact about me is that I have never traveled much in Indian Railways!! My journeys are restricted to fast passengers, EMU's or short distance UR travels. Or else, I do the same route again and again like MS-VM-TPJ or MAS-KPD. All these reasons gave me extra energy, so I decided to stand near the door and enjoy the scene. I have never seen the VM-MDU section in the daytime. So this was the right time for me. I took caution while standing near the door.

I could see passenger trains and freighters put on loop as my train blasted through at good speed. The twin engines were too powerful. Near Pungudi, I could see WDM-2#17711+another WDM-2 with 6128 GUV-MS express. The brother of my current train! Brothers are very passionate and helpful and care amongst themselves. These trains proved this fact. To assist its senior, the junior has stopped and taken the loop, while the Senior (6127) acknowledged Junior’s sacrifice (6128) by a honk and went past. The Station Master was in white shirt and white pant holding a green flag. At this instance, white shirt depicted peace and the green flag depicted that peace/mutual adjustment was the right way in life. As twin WDM-2's teared across hauling my train at 100kph+, the green flag in the station master's hand appeared to have curled. Classic sight.

We had a halt at Manaparai. By this time we were only half an hour late and we have managed to compensate some time. Great work Comrade Pilots! And bonus news. Manaparai is famous for "murukku" a popular dish. Our next halt was Dindigul Jn. I spotted YDM-4#6286 at DG. Vimal even took a pic. I was in an escalated mood. Train journeys in India is definitely exciting. I thanked God for giving humans a lot of things to relish. Too bad that people are wasting time in terrorism. I feel sorry for them. After Tiruchi, many passengers got down and my coach wasn't crowded at all. I wondered why? Vimalakar and myself had one full bay for us now. Vimal settled in lower berth and went for a short nap but woke up soon. I was shunting between the doors and my window seat and I was roaming around as if it was my own backyard. Amazing! In life true love is found only through mother. If you find a near equivalent in anyone else, then you have won your life! I may not be a big shot or a popular guy, but I noticed and felt that love in Indian Railway locomotives. Not only in locomotives and also with other humans. I don't care about what's gonna happen in future, I know I have won life in one way.



Pic Courtesy Vimalakar. N.C. GOC YDM-4#6286 resting at Dindigul Jn.

Adding to my joy, the weather also changed and it became cool. It slightly drizzled too. I rushed to the bay and woke Vimalakar and asked him to take photos. Vimal started taking photos. The weather became cold. I could see my train going amidst mountains. The run from DG till MDU was great! I enjoyed it very much. I got content in life. I don't need anything else. What I have now is more than enough. The speed was good, if not the best and the scenario was awesome. Thanks to the timely rain the weather was too good. Remember, Madurai is known for its extreme heat conditions. We reached Madurai on time! Our train had a lot of buffer time. Especially between TPJ-MDU. We met Poochi and together we went to the front to observe what was happening.

The twin WDM-2's were removed. A ED WDM-2 (I forgot the number) was to continue from MDU! We could observe a young Assistant. By judging him, I could observe that he was slightly tensed or rather excited. He was raring to go. As the train left MDU, we noticed that the rear 7 coaches were removed and the train appeared pretty short.
Along with Poochi, Vimalakar and myself discussed our next move. We then proceeded towards Hotel Pearls. The room had a nice A/C. At this time, we got a message from Gowri Sankar saying that he was onboard 2633 KK Express along with Aravind and Seshu.

We refreshed ourselves and got ready. Poochi and Vimal were discussing seriously about caution orders, Loco pilot skills and other incidents in Indian Railways. Poochi showed his personal booklet-a Xerox of handbook, which shows the caution orders between the sections of MAS-SBC, MAS-BZA, and MS-TPJ. I was amazed at Poochi and Vimalakar's interest in Railways. I am not interested in such technical details at all, so I simply watched them talk.

I was in Loco Pilot uniform to attend the reception. Even one of the loco-pilots commented that,"Even I don't wear that uniform, but you have so much respect for it". The truth is a railman is never a railfan. Our dear friend welcomed us with a smile. He instantly recognized Poochi and Vimal. I was a bit surprised when he recognized me. Generally, people get confused as there are two KK's in our Gang.

Few programmes were conducted to entertain us. South Indian lifestyle wedding! Eventhough Chennai is a part of South India it is still different from other places like Tiruchi, Madurai, Tirunelveli. Chennai is becoming an IT hub and lot of people are becoming modern but down south people are conservative. That is something I appreciate! Conservativeness.

The competitions were interesting and humorous.

* Few women were called on to the stage and were given plastic balls. They were to throw them into a basket and whoever scores the maximum is declared the winner. A bit ordinary eh? Keep reading. You would find it interesting.

* A pack of straws were given. Ladies should pick them up and stack it on top of their heads. Weird game. The one with the maximum straws within a time would be the winner. The funniest part came when the winners posed with their husbands, along with straws on their heads.

* Men were called on stage. Bachelors only. Poochi and Vimalakar yelled at the top of their voices so that our dear friend would hear and call me to the stage. But it didn't happen. I wondered what sort of competition it could be. The participants were given lipsticks and paper. They are to kiss the paper. They were given a minute time. The one with maximum number of kiss impressions would be declared the winner. Thank God! I wasn't there. Poochi and Vimalakar burst into a laughter. I asked them the reason-the reply was funny. They were imagining how I would have done!


6127 MS-GUV Express negotiates a curve somewhere between TPJ-MDU.

We met other loco-pilots too and we had our dinner together at the reception. I spent time interacting with them. Senior KK was coming for the marriage from Ooty. Around 01:00hrs, Poochi and Vimal went to MDU station to receive Sr. KK. But KK's train was running late and was still at Dindigul at that time. Poochi and Vimal returned to the room. The doorbell rang. I was half-asleep. Sleepingly, I walked and opened the door. Poochi was surprised, "Hey, he has opened the door quickly".

Around 04:00hrs Poochi and Vimal went to receive Sr.KK and his family. They have already arrived. Poochi and Vimal returned again for another short nap. I opened the door. They were quite surprised. I guess they didn't expect to open the door soon. Around 04:45hrs, Poochi got up and asked me to get ready first. With Vimal and Poochi taking the loop, I got ready.


Sateilite View of Madurai Meenakshi Amman Temple.

Readers should know onething. I am also called as KK or Junior KK by my school friends and rail club. Then there is also a senior person with the same name and he got the name as Sr.KK. Wonder why I had a different name of “Official” at college rather than the traditional KK. The reason could be due to the fact that I always wear formals and I detest wearing T-shirts with slogans nor jeans.

Our MAS gang members have arrived by 2633 around 0230hrs in the morning. We had booked a room for them at Madurai station itself. As I returned from bath, I noticed that Poochi was talking over the phone with Aravind. Poochi was telling, “We are all coming with KK and his family and kids”. Aravind really thought otherwise. He didn’t know Sr.KK was coming and mistook me. Later, Poochi imitated Aravind’s reaction, “Jr. KK vikku adhukulla kuzhandhaiya?”.

My Return Journey Plan:

1. Madurai to Tiruchi by bus with Vimal. Then Vimal will board an overnight A/C Bus from Tiruchi to Chennai and will travel alone to MAS. I would return alone to Chennai after staying at my uncle's place at TPJ for a night.
2. Tiruchi to Villupuram by MDU-VM Passenger.
3. Villupuram to Chennai by bus, Vaigai or 104SR.

We visited Thiruparungunram and Meenakshi Amman Temples. Then we bid goodbye to Poochi and Sr.KK. They were returning by 2662 Podhigai Express in the evening. We left Madurai in the noon. Vimal and myself boarded a bus to Tiruchi. I bet that Vimal would never forget this bus journey in his life. The bus shook wildly and was unfit for travel. I wondered that the tyres, nuts and bolts would come out before we reach TPJ. The bus halted at Virali Malai (not sure but I think that should be the place). I got down and bought some snacks. The location was good. It was something like a wayside hotel. I could see cows, donkeys and goats. Tractors on the roll! They were coupled to small wagons. I could see distant mountains. The weather was hot. I need to accept it. I was perspiring a lot. Vimal was very tired.

-To be continued...

Madurai revisited after 15 years-Part II

The bus driver seems to be a regular visitor to the hotel. He was talking quite friendly with the owner. They were given free meals I guess. Well it happens in India. When bus drivers halt at hotel, the hotels get a lot of business. The owners in return give the drivers free meals.

After 30 minutes halt, we started towards TPJ. I could observe many engineering colleges being constructed. We arrived at Tiruchi Bus Stand after 3 hours of travel and boarded another local bus towards Government Hospital. My uncle was waiting there with the tickets. After brief introductions, Vimal bid farewell with the A/C bus tickets. I spent the evening with mama, chithappa and kutty cousin sisters. They insisted that I should return by A/C Bus if not a train. They said that TPJ-VM passenger run would be tiring. But I decided to carry on with my plan.

The next day morning, I got ready for my passenger journey trip. I was a bit excited as I know this could go down in my memories as one of my best journeys in Indian Railways. Chithappa accompanied me to give a send off. Ticket counters at TPJ were a bit crowded, so I decided to board the train at Sri Rangam. We went to Sri Rangam by bus from TPJ. I purchased the tickets only till VM. I was still unsure whether to return by 104SR PDY-MS Passenger or 2636 MDU-MS Vaigai Express or by bus. SRGM to VM cost Rs.27 in a passenger. Later, this ticket would go to my collections of tickets and would be preserved as an antique. Only a nutcase(railnut) like me would board a passenger.

I saw twin WDG-3A in 3D livery with a rake of empty flatbed cars. I mistook it for WDM-3D infact. There was no sign of my train and so we started with our personal talks. My chithappa was actually working in GOC Administration section but later took VRS. He recollected his experiences traveling with Loco Inspectors and Officers. Footplating was boring to him. Mostly painful experiences. He regards Railway job as a hectic job. He said that no rail man is a rail fan. Then later he recollected his experiences of footplating Pandian, Nellai, Vaigai and Pallavan Expresses. He has even footplated WDP-3A, WDM-2's. I could have used his influence-many time but I didn't wish to do it. Man! He has been in all prestigious trains!

WDM-2#17519 GOC came with MDU-VM passenger. It was late at SRGM by half an hour. But the train had a lot of buffers so I was positive that it would reach on time. The train was crowded! It had good patronage. All seats were full. I tried checking a few coaches and I got a seat in one. I kept my luggages in it and came to the door. Taking caution, I started practising my favourite hobby. My train halted at all stations. Valadi was one interesting station. It had a VLR. It was a good place to rail fan overnight I guess. The station layout impressed me.

Lalgudi, Kattur, Pullambadi, Kallakudi Palanganatham were some of the stations which I noticed as I proceeded with my journey. I could observe light diesel locos were waiting in loop at many stations. Once my train entered the station they departed. Throughout my run till VM, I saw 3 such locos in same fashion. Kallakudi, Sillakudi and then came Ariyalur. I expected a few people to get down. Few people did get down. But more people got in. So I came back to my seat-to preserve it. Otta Kovil, Vellur Halt, Sendurai, Mathur, Ichangadu, Pennadam were some of the station names I saw after Ariyalur. My WDM-2 hauled train was trying its best to perform like an EMU, but somewhere something was missing.

It was at Ichangadu my train was made to wait for about 15 mins for no reason. I thought that there would be an overtake. At least a goods crossing. But nothing. When my train reached Virudhachalam, many people got down. I got a window seat from here.

Praang!!! Typical GOC horn. WDP-3A came with a passenger from Cuddalore Port. I was surprised. Infact, I never knew that trains ran till Cuddalore Port from Vridhachalam. What to do, my rail knowledge is still poor. As the train proceeded towards Villupuram, I was checking the timetables. I found out the train was running a bit early. The lady next to me even asked whether I was a Railway official. Note that I wasn't in my favourite blue shirt/black pant. Somehow, people mistake me for a elderly person. Something like a 28 year old person. I am only 22!

The next stop was Puvanur(I hope I got the name right). I could observe the gangmen waving the green flag even before the train stopped. No one got down or boarded at this station. Another ideal spot for rail fanning??? Then came Meppuliyur and then Ulundurpet and my train took the loop at Ulundurpet. I got down from the coach. I knew 6127 MS-GUV was on its way. I had no mobiles, camera etc. For this entire trip, I was entirely taking notes in my notepad. I looked around. I didn't see any buildings, nor pizza corners or corporate buildings. I was out of urban jungles. Twin WDM-2 hauled 6127 crossed me at good speeds. As usual, I waved at the LP's. I expected Vaigai overtake at Parikkal or Kandambakkam but it didn't happen. My guess was 2636 was running late. My train negotiated a long curve before entering into Villupuram.

I got down at Villupuram. I made up my mind to return by bus. I went outside and inquired with share auto drivers about bus timings to Chennai. They asked me to wait outside the station. They said that regular drivers won't allow share auto drivers to do business inside Railway Station as share autos are cheaper while regular ones are quite expensive. I crossed the road and waited there. The same auto man came. I was surprised to find that it was only Rs.2 from Villupuram Railway station to Bus stand. If it was Chennai it would have cost me at least Rs.10/- for the same distance!

I boarded a bus from Villupuram to Tambaram. The cost was around Rs.45. The bus took aleast 2 and half hours to reach Tambaram. It was a wonderful route! Yes, the bus took the GST Road from Villupuram. Amazing. It was a hot day too. I opened my idly parcel given by my chithi(at TPJ) and started munching it. The bus ride was good. I wish my friend Vimal was with me. Then from Tambaram to Anna University I commuted in 21G. From Anna University to Krishna Sweets, I came in 23M. I reached my house at 1630hrs. My dog Damien was having his precious evening nap.

-Krishna Kumar.S

Kavaraipettai Trip[03/08/2008]

Ashwanth Jr? Introducing Ashwin Kumar to IRFCA-MAS.



03rd August, 2008.
Myself, Ramki, Vimalakar and Ashwin decided to visit Kavaraipettai for an RF. Kuzhandhai Ramki and myself met at Saidapet. We boarded an EMU towards Park. BRC WAG-5#23667 crossed us with a BCNA rake near Kodambakkam. We saw WAP-4#22306 with 2635 MS-MDU Vaigai Superfast Express near Chetpet, I can also observe WAM-4#20581 slowly moving out of MS. It should have brought incoming 2606 TPJ-MS Pallavan Superfast Express. We entered the subway and we were going slow. We were trailing behind many people. Heavily congested line!! Ramki said, "OVERTAKE". We both overtook a few people with CAUTION without dashing on anyone.


We went to MAS suburban section. We bought Kurkure, Lays to add some flavour to the trip. We waited for Vimal who arrived around 13:20hrs. We boarded a Nellore MEMU. We got our seats. It was crowded but still there was some place for people to stand. We got a call from Ashwin saying that he was waiting at BBQ. We started at 13:50hrs. And I could see Tirupati Express starting towards TPTY. It didn't have the push-pull type cab. It had a AJJ WAM-4 in front. I guess it should have had a Sapthagiri WAM-4 at the rear end too.


It's me posing near the line towards MAS.


We got the preference near BBQ. We were crossing the suburban stations soon. Our EMU did decent speed. We expected Pinakini crossing at Tiruvottiyur or Ennore. My first maiden proper spotting of WAG-9 took place near Wimco Nagar. Later a couple of WAG-7 hauled Goods train crossed us. There were a lot of freight action. WAP-4 hauled Pinakini Express overtook my EMU at MPS. Man! I was speechless. DTS effect. The speed was marvellous. All people inside the EMU were speechless for a few moments. Dhadhak! Dhadak! Dhadhal!
We got down at Kavaraipettai station. It was only a few seconds. I could observe a freighter coming towards MAS. We got into action. But sadly, there was a caution order of 20kmph and all trains came slow. AJNI WAG-7#27774 came with a BCNA rake. The ALP gave a curious look at me. Then we assembled together near the station board to take a pic. I took pics of Ashwin in different angles. We all felt that he looked like Ashwanth. Almost 80 percent.




Sensors. Train Protection and Warning System.


We spotted Sapthagiri liveried caboose. We walked over the tracks. I could observe a few sensors placed on tracks. I have taken pics of these and posted it in Orkut and also in the server. We went towards a small shop nearby. Ramki and Vimal had Bingos. Then we had some cool drinks. We stopped a Pani Poori vendor. Ashwin wasn't interested in it, so only we three had it. The rate was 0.50paise for one piece. I had around 8. Then we purchased a water bottle and chilled ourselves. The weather was good. Awesome, railfanning environement. The light was slightly less. So all my camera mobile photos weren't coming out properly. The best of all action was yet to come. We literally camped in between the tracks. There was a lot of space. We stayed safe.
Navjeevan Express came with AJJ WAP-4#22626. We were surrounded by trains soon! WAG-7#27709 came with Sangamitra Express towards Patna. We waved at the LP's. Honks came in different tunes. We knew that the LP's have recognised us as railfans. The ALP waved out to us with a friendly smile. What a refreshing sight! I was very happy. I always like to see goods locos hauling mainline express trains. I like such eccentric combinations. We waited for sometime. We sat on trolleys, wheels kept nearby. The trolley had some wooden pieces missing here and there. I felt as if sitting on a throne. I didn't feel such comforts even while sitting on cuishion seats. We were talking of SBC convention and we were planning other small trips. I could also observe small houses being constructed near the tracks.



Panaromic location. Pic taken in Kavaraipettai.


I use to think that once I start working, I should save money and purchase a plot near the tracks. Some locations like Kandambakkam(VM-TPJ line), Kavaraipettai(GPD line). A stay over here for a couple of days would be refreshing for the souls and also for the minds. Then I took a pic of an EMU coming towards MAS. It didn't have a board, but LED type lights to indicate the destination name. It was written "MAS" in a dotted manner. WAP-4#22669 came with HWH-MAS Coromondal Express. We then purchased the tickets and got ready to board an EMU. As everyone were looking towards GPD side for the EMU, a WAG-5 hauled freighter was approaching fast from MAS side. I yelled out "hey WAG-5, WAG-5". The LP's honked while they crossed us smiling. The train was doing atleast 80kmph. I looked at GPD side. I could observe a wappie coming slowly, due to caution. I yelled out again, "hey wappie da wappie da". WAP-4#22219 was approaching us. The LP's switched on the headlights for a few seconds. Prong! Prong! They knew that we were railfans. Prong! Prong! It was NZM-CAPE Tirukkural Express. Friendly ALP's! As they crossed us, the ALP waved at Ramki.



L-R: Ashwin, Vimal and Kuzhandhai Ramki.



After a few minutes, our EMU came and we boarded it. At Athipattu, some guy fell off from the train just as our EMU started. The entire coach panicked. It seems his legs went inside the gap between the platform and the EMU. He came out later as others helped him out. He was safe! Thank God. I thought otherwise for a few minutes. Ramki witnessed this scene much more cleared than me, maybe he could explain better. We saw Hyderabad Express, Charminar Express, Circar and Jaipur Superfast(notsure). Circar was hauled by a WAG-9. We couldn't spot clearly the numbers. Ashwin got down at BBQ as he was heading towards Korattur. Vimal and Ramki got down at MAS and proceeded towards Park. I boarded 1 Express to Adyar Signal to return home.

-Krishna Kumar Jr.

Visiting Navagraha Temples-Part III

On my way to Poompukar in a state transport bus.

Packing our bags, we started for Kumbakonam from Thirunallar. I love bus journeys too, especially through Indian villages. We got down at Kumbakonam bus stand. I could see GOWRI SANKAR HOTELS-quite famous in Kumbakonam. I remembered our dear friend Gowri Sankar-WAP-4#22550. We had South Indian meals. It was fantastic! Better than the ones available in Chennai. I am not a great fan of meals, I like Chappati's than rice, but today was different. We booked an A/C room at Kumbakonam KMU. My cousin brother wanted to see the temples in order. As a result, we didn't take a room at KMU after arriving at the station. Sani temple was seen on Saturday, Thiru Nageshwaram on Sunday and Chevvai on Tuesday.

Hotel ARK-quite famous in KMU. The cost was high. Very high. Rs. 1300 per day. The room was good though. We were to visit Thiru Nageswaram on a Sunday. We went for a movie in the evening. "Ayutham Seivom". This could surprise everyone. Generally, I don't see movies or cinemas as I believe the entire film industry is pornographic and lacks culture and a precursor to evil. Most of them projects women as sexual objectss-something which I am against since my childhood. Most human rights violations, rapes, crime happening in India is due to cinema and the content shown on TV which has polluted the younger generation of India. The worst thing is that the present day modern girls encourage such things by buying tickets and watching cinema. I don't visit cinema theaters as I would funding evil and creating an evil empire. But I was with my cousins-so I needed to get along with people and there is nothing wrong provided it doesn't becomes an habit.

Kumbakonam is a town in the Thanjavur district in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is regarded as a temple town because of the large number of temples within the town and the nearby areas. It is a very peaceful city and the festival of Mahamaham is celebrated every 12 years. The town is known for its temples, panchaloha idols and exquisite brass wares especially lamps, silk and betel leaves. It is primarily a market town for the predominantly agriculture based villages surrounding it. Betel leaves are cultivated more in Kumbakonam and popularly known as 'Kumbakonam Vetrilai'.

Story of Kumbakonam:-

When it was time for the destruction of this world a huge Pralaya came up. In order to save the world, vedas, amirthams need to be saved. Lord Brahma collected all these things and put them in a mud pot and kept the pot safety on the top of the Mount Meru.

Pralaya kalam-the period of non stop heavy rain came and the pot of Brahma was washed away by the flood. In due course, moving in the south direction it came to a halt at a particular place which is the present day Kumbakonam Railway station. Lord Shiva broke the pot with an arrow. Immediately, Amudham or Divine Nectar flowed from the pot and formed two tanks. One is known as Mahamaha kulam and the other is Potramarai kulam. The remains of the pot and Amudham joined together to form Lord Kumbeswarar in the Adi Kumbeswarar Temple. In the name of the broken pot, Kumbam-the place came to be called as Kumbakonam.

We visited Thiru Nageswaram temple on Sunday. The drawings in the walls, sthala puranams were interesting. I couldn't understand much. It gave a sort of relief to my heart. Felt refreshed. Life could be so complex. But when I read these inscriptions, I felt different. Today the world is suffering a lot. But those sufferings could be erased if we all could get along. Every religion has got some truth! Be it Christianity or Islam. People don't write anything for the sake of it.

The drawings of deities, sages and animals were fantastic. No words to measure my enjoyment. We had lunch at Kumbakonam and returned to the lodge. We packed our things and proceeded towards Sirkazhi in a bus. Sirkazhi was near to Vaitheeswaran Temple and we had a thought of staying there rather than commuting from Kumbakonam. The bus ride was a bit tiring for my cousins-but I was certainly enjoying. We were to stay two days at that place. We stayed at Hotel Sampoorna. My cousin brother Ramanan booked an A/C room again. Rs. 590 per day. See the difference in the cost of living at Sirkazhi and Kumbakonam.


That's me. Getting blessed again!

The next day was even more interesting. Ramanan preferred to stay indoors and my cousin Jai Karthik and I preferred to bus fan. Since he had come for an important pooja, he would be concentrating only on that and would be visiting temples only related to it. But we were free birds. We boarded the Poompukar bus to Tiruvengadu to see a temple. The bus was very crowded! Trust me. I was sitting on top of the engine near the driver all the way for around one hour. It was hot seat! As I updated this in an SMS to Chennai Gang, I did get some funny replies from my friends. Replies which were much more like a 'A' joke. I don't want to mention them here.

The bus slowly moved out of Sirkazhi and then when it was reaching Thiru Nagiri(a wayside stop), people climbed even on rooftops. The scenario around was full of small mountains, rice fields with tractors all around. Awesome! Awesome! Fantastic. This is what I wanted. I took my camera mobile and started taking pics even amidst the crowd. I was taking pics only of the lonely road ahead towards which my bus was going. Meanwhile myself and my cousin were quite far now. He was being crushed heavily on the other side of the bus. I connected my mobile to headset and started listening to music. Blue-one love, Boney-M, MJ.

After one hour, we reached our destination. I couldn't even shout out to my cousin who was on the other side to ask him to get down. It was too crowdy and noisy. I called him up to get down. Atlast, we got down at bus stop and walked towards Tiruvengadu Buthan Temple. I noticed that his well ironed shirt and pants were in complete shambles. The Buthan temple was fantastic. But no crowd at all. Wonder why? Maybe it gets crowded only on Wednesdays as that's the day people worship the Lord. Some marriage was taking place. I wondered whether the girl was above 18-she looked a bit young. I could make out that she wasn't even 18. But still I am not sure. Trangression of law and human rights! I remembered Michael Jackson's-Heal the world song. Anyway, nothing can be done. I am not a reporter to report all these. I am not a big politician to exercise power. I am a lay man. My cousin brother went around the temple while I stood there and watched the function. A sum of Rs.30,000/- was handed over as dowry. The bridegroom accepted it without any shame. Shame on Indian men who accept dowry. Women have always been a piece of good joke in the Indian society. The girl's father was a bit old. I wondered what he would do for his last days?


My cousin getting blessed by elephant.

After visting the Buthan Temple, we immediately boarded a bus towards 'Ketu sthalam' which was near Keezha Perum Pallam. It was around 5km away from Tiruvengadu. We took a lot of photos in our camera mobiles. Then my cousin suggested that we should proceed towards Poompukar and board the bus there rather than boarding it in the intermediate stops as it could be crowded.

Poompukar is a town in Nagapattinam district in the southern Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It was once a flourishing ancient port city known as Kaveripattinam, which served as the capital of the Chola Kingdom of ancient Tamilnadu. It is located near the mouth of the Kaveri. Much of the town was washed away by what is now speculated to be a tsunami around 500 A.D. Ancient pottery dating back to the 4th or 5th century A.D. have been discovered off shore around this town.

We went to Poompukar from Tiruvalangadu by bus. We entered into the nearest hotel. Some Ajith movie was running in the TV. We ordered two onion roast dosas with chutney and sambar. It was nice. My cousin gave tips of Rs.15. The strange thing happenned only here. We boarded the bus and the bus was about to start. At that time, the server came running towards our bus. He said, "Sir, you paid extra money for the bill. You paid us Rs. 15 extra". My cousin was amazed. Was he innocent? Or he didn't like receiving tips? The people down South India were extremely kind and more humane than the ones in Chennai.

I was standing and travelling for a few minutes as I didn't feel comfortable sitting. The driver applied the brakes suddenly. I dashed against a iron rod slightly. The conductor came running and kept his hands on my forehead and rubbed it gently. "Romba valikkudha sir(Is it paining too much??)" These things happen only in India. If a person in Tamilnadu is having headache, another person from Maharashtra would come running with a Saridon. That's India-"Unity in Diversity".

Amazingly kind people. We got down at Sirkazhi and went to the lodge. Had a nice afternoon nap. Then we went for a movie "Dasavataram" in the evening. I was seeing it for the second time. I liked the way Kamal takes films. No, I didn't mean the kissing ones but the ones like Anbe Sivam, Indian, Dasavataram.


Superb! Handsome!

We checked out of the lodge and proceeded towards Vaideeswaran Temple to offer prayers to Chevvai. Vaitheeswaran Koil is 24 km (15 miles) from Chidambaram(my mothers native). The place is famous for the Siva temple dedicated to Lord Vaidyanatheeswarar and his consort Thaiyalnayaki. It is believed that a bath in the holy waters of the Siddhamirtham tank within the temple complex will cure all diseases. Naadi Jothidam a popular form of astrology is practised here. I should admit the fact that I have been superstituos sometimes. Sometimes I do follow astrology. It might be amusing for someone to know that the person who listens to MJ or the Backstreet Boys would explore into astrology and metaphysics. But still I have felt during my life that few events are beyond human control and that's the reason why I have decided to humble myself.

After visiting Vaitheeswaran Koil, we boarded the bus to Chidambaram. Then from Chidambaram we boarded a bus to Pondicherry. My cousin brother suggested that returning by train would be a better option. My cousins preferred the train journey as it had toilets, berths and in a train like 104SR we can sleep atleast till Chengalpet. My cousins weren't interested in long bus journeys at all. As I neared Kollidam, I took snaps of the bridge. I could observe that the bridges and girders were similar to the ones near Ottivakkam. My bus then crossed Bhuvanagiri, Cuddalore and reached Pondicherry at 14:10hrs. I could see that GOC 17544 Electricity Bill Counter WDM-2 was pulling in with TPTY-PDY slow passenger.

We waited for the train to start. Surprisingly, the slow passenger(PDY-TPTY) was given preference and it started first. Our 104SR started only at 15:15hrs. The power was AJJ WAM-4#20613, which was in Sapthagiri livery. We stopped at Viliannur, Chinnababu Samudram(PDY-TN border) and then Valavanur. We reached Villupuram at 4PM. The run from VM till Mailam was good and we overtook the slow passenger somewhere before Tindivanam.


Buthan Temple at Tiruvalangadu.


Keezha Perumpallam-Ketu Temple area looks virtually empty.

After Mailam, the train was a bit slow in my opinion. We were put in loop at Olakur. I knew 2605 MS-TPJ Pallavan Super Fast Express was on the way. We waited for more than 15 minutes for Pallavan. It came with a Barbie Doll WAM-4#21320. Both the LP and the ALP were having the green flag. I took a video in my camera mobile. I waved at the Loco Pilots(as usual) but this time they showed no reactions. Our train halted at Tindivanam, Melmaruvathur, Madurantakam. At Karunguzhi, we were put on loop. We waited for atleast 15 mins. Silence! It was already dusk. The gangman was sitting near the tracks to show the green lamp. A couple of dogs were running near the tracks. An atmosphere of suspicion and eerie silence. People inside the coaches were snoring.

Praang!!! Praang!! Everyone woke up. Durrr! Durrr! Durr!! Praang!!GOC WDM-2#18687 blasted through the station with 6713 MS-RMM Sethu Express. We were put in loop again at Ottivakkam. ED WDM-3D#11109 with 2633 MS-CAPE Kanya Kumari Super Fast Express crossed us at around 60kmph. We reached Chengalpet very late at around 1910hrs.I got down with my cousins at GDY. Time was 2015hrs.


Kollidam train bridge near Chidambaram on my way back to Chennai.

When I reached my house it was 2040hrs, my adopted dog Damien greeted me by licking my pants and jumping wildly. The trip was over!

-Krishna Kumar.S

Visiting the Navagraha Temples-Part II

Two goats fighting.

After visiting Ayyavadi Prathiyangara Devi Temple, we returned back to Uppiliappan Temple. From Uppiliappan Koil, we boarded a bus to Thirunallar. It was a dusty ride on a hot day. We booked a non-AC room at Hotel Moon Park and refreshed ourselves and waited for my cousin brother(elder) Ramanan who was coming from SBC in 6232 MYS-MV Express the next day. Thirunallar had very less amount of lodges. Infact this was the only proper one I think.

At that time, I even got an SMS from a girl, my school friend. Guess what it was...

"hey krish, I read your rameswaram trip report, nice. how do you make it so lengthy? and u r noting train, engine numbers overnight???? guys of your age should note the mobile number of gals nah?? lolz...". Things like these are common in a railfan's life. Locomotives were more humble than the present day generation girls.


We walked to Thirunageswaram from Oppiliappan Koil.

Thirunallar didn't have good hotels at all. At lunch time, hotels were closed. Have they closed it for lunch, well I believe that they should keep it open during lunch hours for the public, isn't it?? To have good veg food we may need to go to Karaikal which is 5km away. But my cousin had other ideas. We went to a nearby bakery. We boughts puffs, water, pepsi, chips for around Rs.150. That was our dinner and lunch! We returned to our room in the hotel. I saw Chandramukhi film for sometime. It was running in local TV, KLTV(Karaikal TV). Amusing! You get local ads in it. If they start running the ads it runs for atleast 20mins non-stop. The ads were funny. Sarbath shops, local restaurants, catering colleges, grindershops etc etc. A television channel only for Thirunallar!

We did have a plan of visiting Velankanni Church and Nagore Dargah, but I was tired and flat! The plan was cancelled. Too bad that we didn't visit the Church.


Nearing Ayyavadi Prathiyangara Devi Temple.

The next day my cousin brother Ramanan came. We got ready in the morning itself and visited Thirunallar Sani temple. Sprinkling divine waters from the pond, we entered the temple. We showed the Universal Passport (the one with Gandhi photo). We were instantly allowed for immediate darshan. The crowd was too much. That too it was Saturday-you can imagine the rest. We noted the contact details of the person concerned who assisted in darshan so that I could help any friends incase if they were visiting the temple. They could bypass the crowd.


Sheer bliss! Amazing scenario.

Thirunallar is a small town in Karaikal in the Union Territory of Pondicherry. It is most noted for the shrine of Lord Shani. In the Temple there is also a special sannidhi dedicated to Lord Darbaranyesvara, a form of Lord Shiva. When the planet Saturn transits between zodiac signs, literally millions throng this shrine. It is believed by worshipping Sani, one is relieved from misfortunes.


Jai Karthik and myself. Pic taken as we stopped to take rest. We walked amidst greenery, paddy fields, ponds to reach Ayyavadi Temple inside a forest.

Visiting the Navagraha Temples-Part I

6177A-MS-KMU Rock Fort Express negotiating a curve. WDM-2#18337 is the power. Somewhere near Budalur.

July 10th, 2008.

I was to accompany my cousin brothers on a temple trip to Navagraha sthalas of Sani, Rahu and Chevvai. It was a four day trip around Kumbakonam, Sirkazhi, Thanjavur. I boarded my MRTS EMU to Chennai Fort from Kasturibai Nagar. It was slightly crowded. I stood all the way till Chennai Fort. Then I changed to another EMU bound for Tambaram at Fort Station. It was virtually empty. I got down at Chennai Egmore station. My younger cousin brother was coming from Urapakkam and he was to join me at 22:00hrs at Egmore.

At Egmore, I saw a lot of locomotives. ED WAP-4#22223 was the power for 2637 MS-MDU Pandian Super Fast Express. ED WDM-3D#11200 was the power for 6107 MS-MAQ Express. AJJ WAM-4#20613 was the power for 104SR PDY-MS Fast Passenger. I could observe that the Un-Reserved compartments weren't crowded for 2637 and 6107 and there was still some place for passengers to sit. One hour before the departure, the rake of 6177 was shunted into the platform by a small shunting locomotive of the class WDS-4B. ED WAP-4#22294 was the power for my 6177 Rockfort Express. The driver was wearing blue shirt and navy blue pant. You must have seen me wearing a blue shirt and black pant atleast once in a week. And whether you know it or not, there is a reason behind it. I wear that combination as a sign of respect to the working class and for the job I aspired once upon a time. However, on that day I was wearing full-arm shirt with a black pant.

My coach was S2. Seat Number 1. It was the 22nd coach I think. My ticket was booked in the Kumbakonam section of the train as I was heading towards Kumbakonam. After reaching Tiruchi, a set of 7 or 8 coaches would alone continue their journey towards Kumbakonam after a reversal towards Mayiladuthurai. There was a North Indian family travelling along with me. They offered me middle berth and upper berth as some of their mates were given allocation somewhere else. I rejected it as I desperately needed a lower berth for railfaning. I was surprised actually. In most of my train journeys, I have travelled in S2's and S6's most of the time. If I board S6 in the down journey, I would board S2 in the return journey. I don't remember travelling in other types at all.



Crossing a bridge after Thanjavur, towards Kumbakonam.

I could observe the Side Middle Berth arrangement. The coach was also new. It was also clean and the toilets were well maintained too. My train started on time and accelerated out of Egmore at good speed. The train was doing good speed even before entering into Chetpet. We halted at Mambalam. I was wondering why? Then I realised that 6177 had a halt at MBM. Aravind offered even offered to wave at me from his house, but I didn't want to disturb him as it was already 2245hrs. I started observing the scenario. My train was doing well and we blasted through sub-urbs. We approached Tambaram on time. I could observe that the station was empty.


Near Tiruverumbur. Taken from my window seat.

I watched the meter gauge tracks. It brought back old memories. Shrubs, grasses were all over it. I recollected a tamil saying or a proverb. If a person is a sinner, not even grass will grow on the place he is buried after death. But look at the Meter-Gauge tracks! Shrubs and grasses were all over it. Meter Gauge is certainly divine!

Cantenaries were removed. Wires weren't there. Tracks were uprooted near Tindivanam. No tracks, wires, canternaries, but yet YP's, YG's, YAM-1's and YDM-4's still ran in my heart. Forever, I will treasure the classic old days of YDM-4 trains in my heart. The last pieces of MG in this section was being removed. The message was clear. Indian Railways was hitting the last nails in the MG coffin. But will IR remove the canternaries, wires, tracks within my heart?

I thought Rockfort was a slow train. But it wasn't. It blasted through small villages. Pakkam, Acharapakkam, Tozhuppedu, Olakur went in a flash. The station masters were showing the ALL CLEAR signal with their greenlamp. My train then halted at Tindivanam after midnight. I found that my coach was standing at the edge of the platform. And the station was empty too. Not many were boarding the train. I had the feeling that the platform was not of adequate length. My train reached Villupuram 10 minutes late. I could observe ED WAP-4#22223 and AJJ WAP-4#22693 at Villupuram. I thought of getting some food for my cousin Jai Karthik, but he didn't prefer me getting down. So I went and sat in my lower berth. I knew that the best part is yet to come. I got ready! The person on the middle berth was wondering why I wasn't sleeping! My cousin brother couldn't believe that I was still awake. With great difficulty, I managed to sit in my lower berth as the middle berth was already put and I didn't have much space-but I need to go on. After Villupuram, twin WDM-2's were the power for my Rockfort Express. However, after VM, the train is put on loops majority of the time to allow trains coming from south as it is single-line section. It was only an express train so it won't be given any preference over superfast trains which would be coming from south.

I couldn't check the number of the twin engines which hauled me from VM to TPJ as I was in the 22nd coach and generally while travelling I don't take eccentric risks. We negotiated a long curve after Villupuram and we crossed Kandambakkam. Twin WDM-2s were already in loop with 6178 TPJ-MS Rock Fort Express. This was the first crossing. The time was around 01:40hrs. My train crossed Kandambakkam at 50kmph. I was slightly disappointed. I thought that I would be in loop and 6178 would blastthrough but it wasn't so.

6108 MAQ-MS Express was already in loop with ED WDM-3D at Ulundurpet while my 6177 ripped past Ulundurpet at around 60kmph. I was disappointed again. I knew that at least for Pandian I would be in loop. More disappointment. Twin WDM-2's were already in loop with 2638 MDU-MS Pandian Express. At the same time, I was updating the Chennai Gang through SMS as and when the events were happening. Members working in nightshifts were reading and replying if needed-if I had got anything wrong in the SMS text. I was even asked to check whether it was really Pandian-as Pandian is quite presitigious and it may not have taken any loops. But I am sure it was Pandian because the train which I would see next was hauled by a WDP-4 and I read the nameboard as Nellai. This happenned at VRI or Virudhachalam Jn.

I couldn't believe that popular Board monitored train like Pandian was put in loop. But since it had twin diesels I believed that it could be Pandian as during that time Pandian use to get twin diesels. The speed was quite fast and I couldn't note the numbers of the locos. Though it was already night, I was still able to see the scenery around. I was amazed at the beauty. Villupuram-Tiruchi is one of my favourite stretches. Exploring the route in the day time is one of my dreams it did happen only once in May-2008. After that, I didn't have time to do that route again in day time! My train reached Virudhachalam at around 02:30hrs. More sad news. KJM WDP-4#20027 with Nellai Express was already waiting for my train. Another miss.


Myself and my cousin Jai Karthik walked in these roads.

I love everytime when my train is put on loop. It is loads of fun to watch trains overtaking and crossing you as you sit idle. My train departed Virudhachalam Jn (VRI) and was soon notching up. I could observe the train negotiating a curve. The ALP was showing the green light. I strained and looked back and I could see the guard acknowledging with his greenlamp. I was running short of words. Three people faithfully working overnight. No sleep. No rest. Service before self! I use to wonder sometime that the soul of Loco Pilots will reach "Vaikuntam" directly for the amount of service they do to the nation. They deserve AT LEAST this as they are unsung heroes of Indian Railways. Proud to be an Indian Railway fan.

The fun started at Pennadam. My train was put on loop for the first time. Immediately, the RPF's used their flashlights on the bushes and were observing if anyone was hiding in the bushes. This wasn't the only time. They use to do it everytime when any train stopped for a crossing. Nowadays, all trains are packed with RPF's. Especially trains like Pandian, Nellai, Rockfort, Pearl City, Kanyakumari.

An eerie silence continued for about 5 minutes. Generally, the section is sychronized. Timings are well calculated. It is something similar to TDM or the Time Divison Multiplexing in Communication Engineering. Yeah, I remembered something which I studied during my graduation. Once a train takes the loop, another train crosses it at a good speed. At any given time slot, the tracks were being used without any delay. The train which hasn't got the loop generally never halts or waits for other train to take the side tracks. Timings are synchronized. But what was wrong today? Generally, a train never waits for more than 3 or 4 minutes. But today it was waiting for nearly 10 minutes for a couple of crossings.

Another 5 minutes. I returned back to my lower berth. Praang! Praang! Drrrr.. Prang...WDM-3D came with 2634 CAPE-MS Kanyakumari Express. It was doing around 80kmph. "Dhadhak-Dhadhak, Dhadhak-Dhadhak, Dhadhak-Dhadhak, Dhadhak-Dhadhak, Dhadhak-Dhadhak, Dhadhak-Dhadhak, Dhadhak-Dhadhak, Dhadhak-Dhadhak, Dhadhak-Dhadhak, Dhadhak-Dhadhak, Dhadhak-Dhadhak, Dhadhak-Dhadhak, Dhadhak-Dhadhak

Tatak....

The last pair of dhadhak was missing!!

Then at Ichangadu I was again put on loop. WDP-3A crossed us at good speed. It must be 2694 Pearl City Express as that's the one which gets WDP-3A. Then I went for a short nap!! I could feel my train being put on loops for crossings. I didn't want to strain much as the next 4 days would be full of temple visits. So I decided to take rest. Occasionally I got up and observed what was happening, but I was half-asleep. I spotted WDM-2#16678, GOC WDS-6#36017 at Lalgudi.

My train halted at Srirangam. I got up at SRGM and I was awake for the rest of the journey. As my train crossed the bridge near Sri Rangam, I felt the cold breeze. Before entering into TPJ, there was a huge curve. It was a real beauty to watch the train taking the curve. Once Rocky entered TPJ, WDM-3D#11200 departed with 6107 MAQ-MS Express. It had already reversed and was waiting for the start it seems!


Koil Elephant at Uppiliappan Temple.

I thought that my train would get a WDM-2. I knew that I can't note the numbers now. While travelling with cousin or relatives, I don't do eccentric railfanning. I thought of going to the front with the idea of seeing the locomotive number but I didn't want to leave my cousin alone. A locomotive is afterall a locomotive. I felt that a human was more divine, I thought of giving him company than running behind a machine.

I waited till Kumbakonam for noting the number. My train departed TPJ at around 05:40hrs. The acceleration was fantastic. I think after TPJ, roughly 8-9 coaches would continue as 6177A towards Kumbakonam. Who said WDM-2 was old? It was making a meal of the load. Manjattiddal station was crossed in a jiffy.

My train cruised and entered Tiruverumbur station. It was the first halt after Tiruchi. Then our next halt was at Budalur. Then my train blasted across Solagampatti station which still remained in the age-old era of MG days. I updated this in an SMS and said,"Blasting through Solagampatti". I even got a call from Poochi at this time and he said that he was awake all night and was reading the SMS updates. Poochi also added that he has fond memories of Solagampatti. He said that he has taken a pic of YDM-4 at Solagampatti.

My train reached Tanjore around 06:10hrs. I hope I got the time right. At Tanjavur, my train was made to wait for more than 20 minutes. Wonder why? Altast, I decided that I should brush my teeth! I came back to my berth after brushing my teeth. We haven't started yet!


My cousin Jai Karthik is blessed by elephant.


At last we started from TJ at around 06:35hrs. My WDM-2 accelerated and started blasting. WDM-2's acceleration was like an EMU or Chennai local trains. With horns blaring, my train proceeded towards KMU. My train was touching atleast 100kmph when it neared Pasupati Koil. Kids were keeping their hands to their ears and women folks were holding their kids as my WDM-2 thundered through the station with horns blaring. The station was in a curve if I could recollect. The station master was dressed in white shirt/white pant and was wearing an overcoat similar to the olden days of the Raj. The charismatic thiruneeru/viboothi was seen in his forehead. As he showed the green flag proudly, it curved in his hand due to the monstrous breeze caused by my train. The sight was divine! I felt like joining my hands and worshipping him. I felt that he looked like the Supreme deity Lord Shiva with the trident. This was the MOMENT of trip.


The elephant blesses me.

My train rushed through Ayyampet, Pandaravadai, Sunderaperumal Koil, Darasuram and entered Kumbakonam. Onlookers were terrified and WDM-2 screamed wildly before entering into any station. I was very much used to getting down at teriminus. Generally trains enter at 10kmph or 15kmph in Chennai Egmore or Chennai Central. But here Rock Fort entered into KMU at 40kmph or 50kmph. I never knew that it was KMU, till I read the station board.

We got down at Kumbakonam. I went to the locomotive to note down the number. It was GOC WDM-2#18337-great performance! KMU wasn't a big station in my opinion. It had a very good VLR. People were busy with vada's, masala dosas, samosas. Jai Karthik and I proceeded towards a hotel outside the station. I think it was Shri Krishna Hotel. The hotel was empty. We ordered two onion dosas, two vadai's, two idli's, two coffees. Guess how much it would have cost????? Only Rs.28 totally.

Our plan was to join with another cousin who would be coming directly to Thirunallar. Myself and my younger cousin who was with me preferred to see places around Kumbakonam as we had one day extra now. We boarded a mildly crowded bus to Uppiliappan Koil. The bus journey was too good. Typical village scenario. We were standing all the way in the bus as the seats were occupied. I could see the state highway roads were too small(in my opinion). And as it went outside town, it became even narrower. The ride was a bit shaky and roads weren't great. But I enjoyed the ride. We got down at Uppiliappan(or Oppiliappan) Koil and had a good darshan of the deity.

About Oppiliappan Koil:

This Divyadesam is located near Tirunageswaram, near Tiruvidaimarudur and Kumbhakonam. It is one of the well known and well visited amongst the 108 Divya Desams. The legendary story goes as follows:- Bhudevi was reborn as the daughter of Markandeya and an old man sought her hand in marriage; the sage attempted to stall the marriage by stating that his daughter was not well versed in household duties and that she would even forget to season food with salt. The oldman said
that He would forego salt in his food and insisted on marrying Boodevi. The old man revealed Himself as Vishnu and took Bhu Devi as his bride. As a result of which, salt is not included in any of the offerings made to the deity and since He didn't take salt he became to be known as "Uppiliappan or Oppiliappan" signifying that He is comparable to none. "Uppu" also means salt in Tamil.


Uppiliappan Koil

After visiing Uppiliappan Koil our plan was to visit Ayyavadi Prathiyangara Devi temple. It was around 2.5km away from this temple. We started walking through lonely State Highways as there were no buses at that time. We didn't want to waste time waiting! It was a hot, sunny day. The road was empty. Greenery everywhere!Awesome scenario. The people were innocent or rather good in character. To put it in better words, I should say that they were good humans. Why? Wait till I reach Poompukar. You would know why. Keep reading......

-To be continued.