The NFR has decided to operate four new special joyrides under the toy train service of Darjeeling Himalayan Railway (DHR) during the ensuing festive season, a senior official said.
The new toy trains will run between Darjeeling and Ghum in both directions on a daily basis from October 1 and will continue till December 31 in view of the upcoming festive season, Northeast Frontier Railway Chief Public Relations Officer Sabyasachi De said.
“All the joyride specials will run with a composition of three first-class chair car coaches,” he said.
There will be 30 seats in every first-class chair car coach, the official said.
The details of stoppages and timings of these trains are available on IRCTC website and have been informed to the public through various media.
The four trains will depart from Darjeeling at 9:20 am, 11:25 am, 1:25 pm and 3:30 pm every day, while the same will return from Ghum at 10:25 am, 12:30 pm, 2:35 pm and 4:35 pm, he added.
DHR’s popular ride from Darjeeling to nearby Ghum passes a number of well-known Darjeeling sights and attractions as it climbs fearsome 1 in 20 gradients and loops over itself to gain height.
DHR also runs a round trip journey between Darjeeling and Ghum, wherein the train stops at Batasia Loop for 10 minutes for passengers to admire the view and then at Ghum for 30 minutes for the DHR Railway Museum.
Batasia Loop is one of the major attractions of Darjeeling toy train ride and its construction was commissioned in the year 1919 as a requirement of the train to handle the steep gradient which the train has faced at Ghum. Without this lane it would have been impossible for the toy train to connect Darjeeling to Ghum which is the highest location.
Here at this iconic point one can have a spectacular view of the Kanchenjunga mountain range. Batasia Loop also houses the war memorial which was built in the honor of the Gorkha regiment.
Darjeeling-Ghum round trip is just 14 kms but is one of the major tourist attraction of the hill station.