Passionate Railwayman, Compelling Storyteller; Compulsive traveller; Cultural Explorer. Watch out for Food posts and Lunchtime humour. Views strictly personal.
Joined June 2021
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Friends, finally, after some delay, my podcast with @kunalvijayakar on the History of the Bor Ghat railway line on @IVMPodcasts is live! It has come out well though the editing could have been a little better. I regret if there are any errors in the podcast. I would request you to watch it on YouTube in leisure (as it is 47 minutes long 🙂) and let me know how it came out! Thanks! 🙏 #podcast #IndianRailways #History
youtu.be/wVF2NIsF-DM?si=lgNH…
My daughter is 23. When we got our Adhaar cards done, as responsible parents, we ensured that her name and date of birth were correctly printed on the card. Ee then got her a PAN card as well, which was like a breeze.
It always pays to be alert and aware when crucial documents are issued by public authorities. And more alert when your children's documents are being issued. #parents #Documentation
My daughter turned 18. We wanted to get her PAN card issued. Simple enough? Not in India!
Her date of birth was incorrect on Aadhaar. To correct it, we were asked to get a birth certificate in the new format introduced after 2019.
At the birth certificate office, they didn't even have application forms! Instead, a picture of the form was pasted on the wall. We were told to photograph it, find a stationery shop, print it and fill it out.
No stationery shop nearby. Spent 20 minutes finding one.
Then another problem: the registration number on her old birth certificate was illegible because of an overlapping stamp.
Officials were reluctant to help and asked us to return after a few days. After much insistence, one helpful young man finally traced the number.
Application submitted. Relief? Not quite.
"It will take 2–3 months, sir."
Apparently, the application must travel through multiple government departments before a new birth certificate can be issued.
All this just to correct a date of birth, so that an 18-year-old can get her PAN card!
We talk about Digital India, but basic government services still require citizens to run from pillar to post.
Why must something so simple be so complicated?
Ananth Rupanagudi retweeted
A rare picture of Darbar of the Mysore palace, from about a century ago - the sheer opulence of the hall, the decor and the symmetry - the Maharajas had a great sense of aesthetics, even if they lived a luxurious life.
The current Mysuru Palace, a premier example of Indo-Saracenic architecture designed by Henry Irwin, was constructed between 1897 and 1912 after a fire destroyed the previous wooden palace.
The palace is renowned for its intricate carvings, the Durbar Hall, the Golden Howdah, and over 96,000 lights that illuminate it on Sundays and holidays. While it acts as a museum today, it remains the official residence of the Wadiyar dynasty.
The Durbar Hall is a 245-foot by 156-foot hall that served as the venue for royal ceremonies, featuring ornate pillars, imported French lamp stands, and an oil painting of Sita Swayamvara and other scenes from the Ramayana. The hall is known for its tall, ornate pillars and spacious, open design.
A plaster of Paris statue of Maharaja Krishnaraja Wodeyar IV, created by palace artist B. Basavaiah, stands in the hall. It was historically used for the King's public audience (Durbar) and special occasions like the Dasara festival. #Mysuru #palace #Heritage @DrDeepakKrishn1 @ArunKrishnan_
A beautiful photo of WP 7713 waiting to be linked to the Taj Express at Agra Cantt station, captured by David Hill, in 1982. This WP loco was manufactured indigenously at CLW in 1966.
The Taj Express was introduced on October 1, 1964, as a dedicated day-trip tourist train running between New Delhi and Agra (later Agra Fort / Agra Cantt), operating at a then-record speed of 105 km/h and hauled iconically by Indian locomotive class WP steam engines.
Central Railway painted the train's AC chair cars with a distinctive cream stripe on the top third and blue on the bottom two-thirds, matching the livery on the locomotive's cab and tender. The image of a massive WP steam engine pulling sleek blue-and-cream coaches against the backdrop of North India's plains—and historic photographs near Agra—became a defining icon of Indian railway romance. #IndianRailways #Agra #TajExpress #History
Lunchtime humour - Shayar - Baithh kar Mehbooba ki zulfon ke saaye mey aisa josh aaya,
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Audience - Wah, Wah, Wah! Phir kya hua!
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Shayar - Phir...
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Biwi ne dekhliya aur ICU mey hosh aaya! 😀😛😂
This rare and breathtaking natural phenomenon occurs during late autumn (typically late October to November). After the monsoon season retreats, it leaves behind an exceptionally clean, dust-free atmosphere with crystal-clear skies. The stark, white silhouette of the Himalayan range creates a beautiful contrast against the foreground of local green fields, railway overhead lines, and the station's nameboard.
Thakurganj is situated in Bihar's Seemanchal region, uniquely positioned close to the West Bengal border and roughly 55 km from Siliguri, making it geographically close enough to catch these distant mountain peaks when pollution levels drop to a minimum. #Kanchenjunga #stationview
One of the most beautiful journeys on our railways is on this section - Lumding-Badarpur section, with the train passing through the green and scenic North Cachar Hills - this capture is near New Haflong station, in the jurisdiction of @drm_lmg_nfr in @RailNf! Pic courtesy, Sumit! #IndianRailways #photography @anuradhagoyal @centerofright
While #CycloneArnab wreaks havoc about 600 km away, it's bright and sunny today in Chennai! #ChennaiWeather
A birthday party being organised on the lawns of the Chennai Rail Museum, Perambur! The Museum allows space usage for birthday parties and special occasions.
You can book open or designated areas at the museum and decorate them with balloons and party setups. Outside food is permitted for events and gatherings. The museum features a unique Rail Coach Restaurant inside an air-conditioned train coach where guests can dine. For children, a toy train ride, train models, and an activity area are the main attractions. #IndianRailways #museum #events
A group of Naga women carrying tall bundles of thatch on their backs in this historical photograph from 1894, showing a part of traditional life in the Naga hills.
Thatch was a crucial material used for roofing traditional Naga homes. Gathering and transporting it from the hillsides to the village required immense strength and coordination. The women used to balance these massive loads using a traditional woven strap placed across their foreheads, shifting the heavy burden to their back and core muscles to navigate the steep, unpaved terrain.
Photos from this specific period provide an un-modernized look at the traditional attire, woven textiles, and communal labor structures that defined daily life in the Naga Hills long before rapid outside influences altered local customs. #History #Nagaland
A busy street, Avenue road, Bangalore— c. 1870s. Avenue Road is the historic and commercial heart of Bengaluru, dating back to the founding of the city in the 16th century. The road forms the north-south axis of the original Bengaluru Pete laid out by the chieftain Kempe Gowda I in 1537.
It was historically known as Doddapete (meaning "Big Market" in Kannada) or Dodda Beedi. It was also called the royal street or main entry path for dignitaries arriving in the settlement. It was named Avenue Road later due to the grand, tree-lined canopy of massive trees that once shaded the passage.
It became home to prominent institutions, including the Rice Memorial Church established via the London Missionary Society in the 19th century. It served as a key arrival and trading haven for thousands of refugees migrating from Pakistan following Independence.
It evolved through centuries as a vibrant melting pot of weavers, grain merchants, brass workers, and specialized guilds. It was globally and locally renowned for dense clusters of old, rare, and second-hand bookshops. It's also a major commercial centre for wholesale and retail silk saris, garments, and fabrics. It's a long-standing baseline market for bullion, traditional jewelry, and financial trade as well.
It's dotted with over two hundred ancient shrines, temples (such as the 16th-century Anjaneya and Ranganatha Swami temples), local dargahs, and historic community kattes (tree platforms). #Bengaluru #street #history @DrDeepakKrishn1 @anilbhatortho
Early 20th century, The General Post Office - Bombay (Mumbai).The General Post Office (GPO) in Mumbai is a heritage landmark designed in the Indo-Saracenic architectural style.
British architect John Begg (with contributions from George Wittet) conceptualized the new building in 1902. Construction started on September 1, 1904, and finished on March 13, 1913, at a total cost of ₹1,809,000.
The design is directly modeled after the famous Gol Gumbaz in Bijapur, Karnataka. It features a massive central dome measuring 65 feet in diameter, surrounded by 64 inverted lotus petals. The dome rises over an ethereal, spacious central hall where daily postal operations take place.
It was constructed primarily of dark black Kurla basalt, accented with Malad/yellow Kurla stone and white Dhrangadhra stone dressings. #Mumbai #postoffice #heritage #History @mumbaiheritage @dhavalkulkarni
Everything that is happening today at this moment is a result of the choices one has made in the past. Good morning, friends, and have a great day ahead! 🙏 #WednesdayWisdom
A heartwarming picture of a mother and child bidding goodbye to the loco pilot dad who sets off on his journey which is his duty. #IndianRailways #locopilot
A slightly hazy picture of YP 2257 shunting at Old Delhi station, captured by Peter Schoeber, in November 1990. This locomotive was manufactured indigenously at TELCO, Jamshedpur, in 1956. During the 1970s and 1980s, Old Delhi Junction (Delhi Main) served as one of India's premier dual-gauge railway hubs, acting as a massive operational gateway where broad gauge (BG) and metre gauge (MG) tracks ran side-by-side.
Double-track BG and MG lines converged into the station from the west. While the broad gauge network belonged to Northern Railways (NR), the metre gauge layout was shared between the Northern and Western Railways (WR), feeding traffic to and from the vast MG networks of Rajasthan, Gujarat, and Haryana.
By the mid-1980s, the writing was on the wall for steam. The highly successful YDM4 diesel locomotives began taking over the prestigious long-distance expresses out of Old Delhi. However, the YP class remained a dominant, nostalgic fixture, powering a vast web of slower regional stopping trains well into the twilight of the decade. #IndianRailways #Delhi #MetreGauge #History
Lunchtime humour - When a husband was going to the market, wife told him - Get something which makes me look very beautiful.
Wife (when husband returned) - So honey, what did you bring for me?
Husband - Nothing for you but I bought for myself two bottles of whiskey. 😃😛😂
The rugged Walayar Ghats, the monsoon clouds, the greenery and the scenic paddy fields as a colourful express train speeds it's way to Palakkad - all make for a beautiful capture, in the jurisdiction of @DRMPalghat in @GMSRailway! Pic courtesy, Gautham Karthik! #IndianRailways #photography @parvathimenon @PiyuNair
Calcutta, circa 1910 — A westward view across Howrah Bridge, with Howrah Station visible in the background, capturing the city’s historic landscape in the early 20th century.
The bustling street scene in the foreground documents everyday life in early 20th-century Calcutta (now Kolkata), highlighting a dense mix of traditional bullock carts carrying goods, manual laborers, and pedestrians navigating the approach to the floating bridge.
Designed by Sir Bradford Leslie and opened in October 1874, this original bridge was a floating pontoon structure. It rested on hollow metallic cylinders and spanned 1,528 feet across the Hooghly River to connect Calcutta and Howrah.
The red-brick Romanesque-style building seen in the background is the "Old Complex" of the Howrah Junction Railway Station. This flagship terminal structure was completed and opened in 1905–1906 to meet the massive surge in rail traffic.
Because it was a low-profile floating bridge, a 200-foot central section had to be periodically unfastened and towed out of the way during the day to allow large marine steamers to pass north and south along the river. @somnath1978
#History #Kolkata
