Brand New X-Class Locomotive For NMR || Transit To Stream Loco Shed || X-37400 || HD

The Nilgiri Mountain Railway (NMR) is a 1,000 mm (3 ft 3+3⁄8 in) metre gauge railway in Tamil Nadu, India, built by the British in 1908.[1] The railway is operated by the Southern Railway and is the only rack railway in India.

The railway relies on its fleet of steam locomotives.NMR switched to diesel locomotives on the section between Coonoor and Udhagamandalam. Local people and visitors led a campaign to return to steam locomotives in this section.

In July 2005, UNESCO added the Nilgiri Mountain Railway as an extension to the World Heritage Site of Darjeeling Himalayan Railway. The site then became known as Mountain Railways of India.

History :-

In 1854, plans were made to build a mountain railway from Mettupalayam to the Nilgiri Hills. However, it took the decision-makers 45 years to cut through the bureaucratic red tape and complete the construction. The line was completed and opened for traffic in June 1899. It was operated first by the Madras Railway under an agreement with the government.

The Madras Railway Company continued to manage the railway line on behalf of the government for a long time until the South Indian Railway company purchased it.

In 1907, the railway received four Double Fairlie locomotives to work the line. These were part of a batch built by the Avonside Engine Company in 1879 and 1880 for service in Afghanistan, but had been in store since 1887. The Fairlies continued in use until at least 1914.

Initially, Coonoor was the final station on the line. In September 1908, the line was extended to Fernhill. By 15 October 1908, it was extended to Udagmandalam. These extensions from Coonoor on the same gauge over a distance of 11+3⁄4 miles (18.91 km) were done at a cost of ₹ 2,440,000.

The NMR and all of its assets, including the stations, the line, and the track vehicles, belong to the Government of India and are managed by the Ministry of Railways. The Southern Railway performs the day-to-day maintenance and management, but several programs, divisions and departments of the Indian Railways are responsible for operating, maintaining and repairing the NMR.

About X-Class Locomotives :-

X class locomotives are metre gauge 0-8-2T rack and pinion compound locomotives on the Nilgiri Mountain Railway in the Nilgiri Hills of southern India. They are used on the 28-kilometre-long (17 mi) section between Coonoor and Mettupalayam, where the steepest gradient is 1 in 12.5. The railway uses the Abt system on these steep sections. The locomotives have two high-pressure and two low-pressure cylinders, located outside the locomotive's frames. The low-pressure cylinders drive the rack gears, and are positioned above the two main high-pressure cylinders which drive the main wheels.

To ease the load on existing X-class locomotives, four oil-fired X-Class 0-8-2T rack and pinion compound engine steam locomotives with a similar design were ordered. The first one (No. X 37396) arrived in February 2011 and entered service on March 24 of that year. The second one (X 37397), named "Betta Queen" was rolled out at the Golden Rock Railway Workshop in February 2012, and entered service on the railway in March. The third one built by Golden Rock, Trichy (X 37398), named "Nilgiri Queen", entered service in March 2013. The fourth (X 37399), named "Nilgiri Flycatcher" was rolled out on March 5, 2014 at the Central Workshop in Ponmalai, Tiruchirapalli, to join the fleet after trials on the railway.

In 2020, under Central Govt's order, Ponmalai Goldenrock (G.O.C.) started manufacture of one coal-powered and one oil-powered X-Class Steam Engine, But due to COVID-19, lockdown etc, could not finish and roll out on time.

Transit Route Of This Locomotive :-

Ponmalai Golden Rock Work Station-Kullithalai ByePass-Puliyur ByePass-Sukkalyiur-NH7-Karur City Vaiyapuri Nagar Roundane-Vellakovil-Kangayem-Avinasi-Annur-Mettupalayam Stream Loco Shed

Transit Operator :- SGT-Sri Ganesha Transport

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