Thursday, September 6, 2012

Mountain Railways of India – UNESCO World Heritage Sites

These mountain railways of India are an example of remarkable technology of the 19th century:

Darjeeling Himalayan railway – was opened in 1881, linking Darjeeling to the plains in Bengal and was the first passenger train to operate in the mountainous region. It was declared World heritage site in 1999.


Kalka – Shimla railway – connects Shimla to Kalka and was operational since 1903. Last October, I had the pleasure of travelling from Kalka to Shimla via the toy train, the Shivalik Deluxe Express. I will share my memorable train experiences, soon.


Shivalik Deluxe Express

View of the beautiful hilly terrain from the train
Nilgiri Mountain Railway – This track was completed in 1908 and connects Coonoor and Udhamandalam in the state of Karnataka.

The above two mountain railways were included in the World heritage sites list in 2008.

Let us explore !