For the first time ever in my life, I travelled in a gauge other than Broad Gauge. My journey on the Kalka Shimla Railways is an unforgettable jewel for my eyes and my heart. This was even my first experience travelling in North India after I came into my senses. Occasionally, I'll be posting images of my journey in 52453 Kalka Shimla Express in this blog in the form of a thread (don't know for how many days will this thread continue :P). To begin with, I'm posting the train board of 52451/52452 Shivalik Deluxe Express in the next reply.
Obviously, loco pics won't be here as there's a glitch because of which loco pics can't be added through replies.
Truly,...
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the whole route is an engineering marvel and one of the wonders of Railfan World. It was a bliss for me to enjoy the Shivalik Range with Indian Railways (KSR)

NORTHERN RAILWAYS INTRODUCES CHARTERED SEAT IN JHAROKA & RA-100 SELF PROPELLED COACH AND RAIL MOTOR CAR ON KALKA-SHIMLA RAIL SECTION

To boost tourism on Kalka - Shimla Rail section Northern Railway introduced chartering of individual seat in Jharoka, RA-100 self propelled train coach and Rail Motor Car during summer season from 13.06.2019 to 10.09.2019. Now the passengers can book tickets in these coach and trains on chartered seat basis. Presently the facility of booking of Jhoroka, RA-100 self propelled coach and Rail Motor Car are available on full...
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charter basis.
Passengers can book tickets in these services from booking counters at Kalka and Shimla Railway stations. In RA-100 self propelled coach & Jharoka Coach maximum 08 passengers can book their tickets while in Rail Motor Car 12-14 passengers can book. These all services are operated on demand basis. The services will only be operated when minimum 06 passengers are booked for RA-100 and Jharoka and in case of Rail Motor Car it will be after 08 passenger have purchased the ticket and then service shall be made available within 02 hours. Tickets once purchased are not refundable but if 06 no. of passengers in case of RA-100, Jharoka & 08 passengers in case of Rail Motor Car are not available then Railway shall unable to operate train and in such condition full fare will be refunded from ticket counters at Shimla and Kalka Railway stations. The tickets purchased for these services are not transferable and at the time of booking original ID proof, copy of which is submitted at the time of booking to be produced by the passenger during journey failing which he/she will be treated as without ticket and passenger shall be charged as per extent rules. In case of advance booking of respective coaches of charter service they will be confirmed one day in advance and these services shall run subject to availability of stock and in case say for example for a particular date Jharokha is booked in advance on that date due to non availability this service shall not be available for on seat displacement basis. Child above 5 years would be treated as on adult fare and below 5 years would be free of cost but no seat would be given.

The Railways have always been in the forefront of Nation building by creating better Travel and Tourism opportunities in a region. In this regard Railways has effectively contributed towards enhancing Tourism facilities in the state of Himachal Pradesh by providing greater impetus to the UNESCO World Heritage Site, the Kalka - Shimla Hill Railways.

The Kalka Shimla Railway is a very long-established and ambitious narrow gauge mountain railway project built by the British in India. It required a great deal of engineering development work, and took twenty years to complete, largely because of the difficult mountainous terrain and climatic conditions. The railway line connects the towns of Kalka and Shimla. Kalka is situated at the foot hills while Shimla the erstwhile summer capital of British India and now the state capital of Himachal Pradesh, is situated at a whooping height of over 2000m in the Shivalik Region of Himalayas. The 100 km long track has 102 Tunnels, the longest being 1,144 m at Barog, 869 Bridges, 18 Stations and 919 curves on it.

The Kalka – Shimla Train is a major tourist attraction and a trip to the region is considered incomplete without a ride on the Hill Train. Northern Railway offers multiple choices of train services which include Rail Motor Car, Shivalik Palace, Shivalik Queen and Shivalik Delux Express. ‘Jharokha’ and ‘Vistadome coach’ have been added to popular services. The section is abuzz with free wi-fi provided at all stations. click here