but I needed someone to drop me off to the bus stop. So much for disappearing mysteriously.
It was a good day, people didn't seem to be unhealthy. So, I utilized my time researching the route and booked a ticket in current availability. The only reservation I did, or so I thought. I headed out for the expressway in night, somehow boarded a UPSRTC, which seemed like punch it and it would fall apart. But somehow, it made it till Lucknow, from where I had to board my train.
My train was the ANVT-GKP weekly, in which I was going to travel till Gonda. With side lower allotted to me in the empty coach, it was going to be a beautiful nonstop run. I woke up somewhere around Colonelganj, and the surroundings were something out of a movie. It was a misty morning, wrapped in a blue hue, with our train racing through the magestic plains of Uttar Pradesh in a fine drizzle.
I deboarded at Gonda, and while I couldn't get the snaps I had planned, I was amazed by the rustic beauty of the erstwhile MG station. I went out to buy a ticket for the Gonda-Bahraich DEMU and, while at it, captured the beautiful IZN YDM-4 stabled outside, looking for the first time at an MG loco in the real world. I boarded the last vendor coach of the train, and it turned out to be a good decision because it was basically empty, while the rest of the train was jam-packed.
The whole route converted from MG is a site to behold, huge trees, seemingly older than time looming all over the platforms, train chugging between water filled nurseries of paddy on an overcast morning. No trace of humanity in vicinity and the chatter of vendors inside the coach. We had a crossing, too, with the delayed BRK-BSB Intercity hauled by a GZB WAP-5.
There was a person sitting beside me with a lot of cameras whom I thought to be another railfan, so I found a companion, fine. I was greatly disappointed when I found out he was just a wedding photographer going to Bahraich. I deboarded at Bahraich and went out to buy tickets again for Mailani. And I was surprised to see the crowd of daily travelers. Again, I boarded the SLR. Except for the electrical components, the train was maintained well. Coaches were clean, toilets scrubbed, with running water.
The train lurched into motion, and the coach came to life. The coach was occupied mainly by people going to their daily jobs in Risiya. From nurses to policemen, shopkeepers to peons, hawkers to teachers, everyone seemed to know each other. That's the beauty of small towns. Somehow, these people included me in their conversations as if I were their daily co-passanger. And for once, I forgot about capturing the route.
Almost everyone deboarded at Risiya, and the passenger from Nepalgunj, which usually xinged at Nanpara, crossed us at Risiya itself. The jungle hadn't started yet, and we were passing through the lazy farmlands and occasional villages. Once the train halted at Nanpara, it started to drizzle. The train was completely empty now. Since the halt at Nanpara was almost an hour long, I got down to capture the train below the huge Maulsree tree and the daily life at the station.
Nanpara is the junction of Bahraich-Mailani and Nepalgunj lines. Few spare coaches standing on the loop, colonial style building, and huge Maulsree and Sal trees looming over the whole station. Vendors frying samosas and bread pakoras, while people moving on the platform bustling with activity, the station is a page taken out of Malgudi Days.
With nothing to eat, I bought those freshly made snacks. While they were delicious, they were a bit oily for my liking. After an hour, the Guard waved his flag, the loco whistled, and we moved further. The jungle starts somewhere around Mihinpurwa. Before that, the route is like the typical northern Indian plains. Farmlands stretching to the horizon and occasional plantations around the tracks. Stations are beautiful and will take you back in time. The train got decent patronage, and I was surprised that everyone boarded with a valid ticket.
After Mihinpurwa, the track runs parallel to the road for a while under the thick canopies of Sal trees in the Katarniaghat Wildlife Sanctuary. The jungle starts gradually and takes over the surroundings. A layer of mist surrounded the tracks, and I could spot occasional Langurs, few birds, and a lot of brooks. The jungle itself seemed to be lost in its own thoughts. We crossed our pairing train somewhere inside the sanctuary, coming out of the forest, crossing the semaphores, and disappearing back into the jungle.
We curved out of the Katarniaghat gradually and entered the grassland, crossing the mighty Sharda Barrage over an angrily churning Sharda river. The river had flooed the area, showing that ultimately, mother nature reclaims back what belongs to her. I made a few local friends on the train. A person traveling solo needs someone to capture him, too, right. We crossed another service going to Bahraich at a yet another beautiful station. If you're traveling on that route, you'll realize that time has stopped on these stations somewhere in the past. It's surreal.
Unlike Katarniaghat, Dudhwa starts abruptly. You can literally see the forest approaching, with a clear demarcation between plain grasslands and high Sal trees. Dudhwa is a combination of grasslands, tall Sal trees, and a lot of water bodies. And yes, endless rows of termite mounds, some of them higher than our train, and probably older than me. Now, do you remember the first line I mentioned? I was sitting on the door, and one of my slippers fell down on the ground. And there I am, watching at it left behind on the forest floor.
But somehow, the train screeched to a halt a few meters ahead. Most probably, to let a bunch of animals cross the track. And simultaneously, I jumped out and ran, barefoot back in the jungle. Retrieved my slipper, clicked a photo of the train, and ran back. As soon as I grabbed the door handle, the train lurched into motion. Now, looking back at that day, I realize it was pure madness. Running back in a tiger paradise, leaving my DSLR bag, food, water, charger, and my wallet on the train without thinking what would've happened if I missed the train. What is a journey without such stories.
After that, the route was pretty much the same, and I dozed off. Woke up at Dudhwa and again went back to sleep. Finally, I woke up near Palia and saw a bunch of keymen sitting around me. They were talking about a tiger sighting near Dudhwa railway station. Finally, an exciting journey came to an end when we reached Mailani. There was enough time for me to capture the MG heaven of Mailani. I bought tickets for Lucknow and boarded the Mailani-Gorakhpur Express. The transition from slow, beautiful MG to EMD hauled LHB train made me realize how rapidly time has changed during these two and a half decades of my life.
Slept pretty much all the way to LJN. The 15010 needs more General coaches as there was a huge rush, whereas the AC and SL were empty. Forgot my way out of LJN to Charbagh, I still can't figure out why. I had to be rescued by my friend who coincidentally was present on the station. Exhausted by the day journey, I booked a 2AC back to Etawah in Marudhar Express and called it a day.
Experiencing the slow life away from the rush of the cities, in the heart of rural Uttar Pradesh. Exploring the jungles but in a train rather than the open jeeps. This will take you back to how life used to be just a few years back. Laid-back and simple. Thank you for reading. A few snaps from the same journey,
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please wait...Translate to HindiKya hoga agar main tumse poochun kis sabse bewakoof wali cheez ki tumne apni chappal wapis lene ke liye ki? Main ek tiger reserve ke andar sprint maara tha. Ye hai meri ek do number ki kahani, jab maine India ke ek last mainline MG route ke raaste par safar kiya.
Ek achhe July ke subah, mera zindagi aur kaam mein chakkar dekhkar mujhe bohot overwhelmed feel ho raha tha. To maine woh kiya jo kisi normal insaan ko karna chahiye, main Instagram par pehli jagah dikhai gayi uss taraf chala gaya. Maine kuch dino ke liye mysterious tareeke se ghayab hona tha, lekin mujhe kisi ko bus stop tak chhodne wala bhi chahiye tha. To gayi woh mysterious ghayab ho gaya.
Accha din tha, log unhealthy nahin dikhai de rahe the. Isliye maine apna time nikala route ko research karke aur ek ticket book kiya. Bas ek hi reservation tha mera, ya aisa lag raha tha. Raat ko main expressway ke liye nikla, kisi tarah se ek UPSRTC bus mein chad gaya, jo lag raha tha jaise bus itni weak hai ki punch karoge toot jayegi. Par kisi tarah se, voh Lucknow tak pahunch gaya, jahan se mujhe apna train pakadna tha.
Mera train tha ANVT-GKP weekly, jisme main Gonda tak safar kar raha tha. Ek khali coach mein side lower seat mil gayi thi, beautiful nonstop run hone wala tha. Main kuch dur Colonelganj ke aas paas uthta hoon, aur mahaul kuch film jaisa lag raha tha. Ek dhundhli subah thi, blue rang mein lipti hui, hamari train Uttar Pradesh ke magestic plains mein ek fine drizzle ke beech daud rahi thi.
Main Gonda par utra, aur jab main jo snaps plan kiye the, voh nahi kar paya, main voh purani MG station ki rustic beauty mein hairan ho gaya. Main bahar gaya Gonda-Bahraich DEMU ka ticket kharidne ke liye, aur vahin par, beautiful IZN YDM-4 ko capture karne ka mauka mila, asli duniya mein pehli baar ek MG loco ko dekhne ka. Maine train ka last vendor wala coach mein chadha, aur yeh nikla ek achha faisla kyunki voh practically khali tha, jabki baaki train bhari hui thi.
Pura route MG se badal gaya hai, aankhon ko behad sunder lag raha hai, bade-bade ped, jo samay se bhi purane lag rahe hai, platforms ke aas paas stand karte hue, train paddy ke bhare nurseries ke beech chalti hai ek cloudy subah. Kisi insaniyat ka pata nahi, bas vendors ke charche coach ke andar. Hamne ek crossing bhi ki, der se chal rahi BRK-BSB Intercity ko dekha jo ek GZB WAP-5 ke dwara kheecha ja raha tha.
Mere bagal mein ek shakhs baitha tha jiske paas kayi cameras the, maine socha kuch aur railfan hoga, kuch to sahi hai. Main hairan hua jab pata chala ki bas ek wedding photographer tha jo Bahraich jaa raha tha. Main Bahraich par utra aur phir maine Mailani ke liye phir se ticket kharida. Aur mujhe surprise hua dekhkar ki daily travelers kaafi zyada the. Fir se maine SLR mein chadha. Bina electrical components ke, train achhe tareeke se maintain ki gayi thi. Coaches saaf the, toilets scrubbed the, running water ke saath.
Train motion mein aayi aur coach mein jaan aa gayi. Coach mainly logon se bhara hua tha jo apne daily jobs ke liye Risiya jaa rahe the. Nurses se leke policeman, shopkeepers se leke peons, hawkers se leke teachers, sabko lag raha tha jaise sab ek doosre ko jaante hai. Yahi small towns ki khoobsurati hai. Kisi tarah se, yeh log mujhe apne conversations mein shamil kar rahe the jaise main unka daily saathi tha. Aur ek baar ke liye, main route ko capture karne ke baare mein bhool gaya.
Lagbhag sab log Risiya par utre, aur Nepalgunj se aane wale passenger, jo aksar Nanpara par rok kar hota hai, humein Risiya mein hi cross kar gaya. Jungle abhi shuru nahi hua tha, aur hum lazy farmlands aur kabhi kabhi gaonon ke beech se guzar rahe the. Jab train Nanpara par ruki, shuru ho gaya baarish. Train bilkul khali tha ab. Kyunki Nanpara ke rukne ka lagbhag ek ghanta tak samay tha, main utra train se neeche taki huge Maulsree tree ke neeche aur station par roz ki zindagi ko dhyan se dekhne ke liye.
Nanpara Bahraich-Mailani aur Nepalgunj lines ka junction hai. Kuch spare coaches jo loop par khadi thi, colonial style building, aur bade-bade Maulsree aur Sal ped station ke upar khade the. Vendors samosas aur bread pakoras talte hue, log platform par ghum rahe the, station ek purani kahani Malgudi Days ki tarah lag raha tha.
Kuch khaane layak nahi tha mere paas, to maine woh taza snacks kharide. Jitne bhi delicious the, mere swaad ke liye thode zyada oily the. Ek ghante ke baad, Guard ne apna jhanda hilaya, loco guardi ki awaaz di, aur hum aage badhne lage. Jungle kahin Mihinpurwa ke aas paas shuru hua. Usse pehle, route typical northern Indian plains ki tarah tha. Fasal ke khet lambi lambi dikhai deti thi aur occasional plantations tracks ke aas paas the. Stations sundar the aur tumhe vapis purane samay mein le jaate the. Train ko achhi public thi, aur mujhe surprise hua ki har koi valid ticket lekar utra.
Mihinpurwa ke baad, track kuch samay ke liye sadak ke saath saath daudta hai, Sal pedon ke ghane jhundon ke neeche Katarniaghat Wildlife Sanctuary mein. Jungle dhire dhire shuru hota hai aur chaaron aur tabaadla le leta hai. Ek dhundhli parat tracks ko ghira, aur main occasional Langurs, kuch birds aur bohot saari nadiyon ko dekh sakta tha. Jungle khud aise lag raha tha jaise apne apne vichaar mein khoya hua hai. Humne hamara saathi train kahin sanctuary ke andar cross kiya, jo jungle se bahar aaya, semaphores ko cross karke jungle mein waapis gaya.
Hum Katarniaghat se dhire dhire nikal gaye aur ghass ki bhoomi mein pravesh kiya, ek gussa bhari Sharda river ke upar chal rahi Sharda Barrage ko cross kiya. Nadi ne jagah falan di thi, dikhate hue ki maa prakriti ant mein apna haq maang leti hai jo uska tha. Main ne train par kuch local dosto se dosti ki. Akela safar karne wale ko bhi capture kiya jaana chahiye na. Ek aur service ko Bahraich jaate hue dekha ek aur sundar station par. Agar tum us route par safar kar rahe ho, to pata chalega ki samay in stations par kisi purane jamane mein ruka hua hai. Yeh purani duniya wala ehsaas hai.
Katarniaghat se alag Dudhwa ekdam achanak shuru hota hai. Aap literally jungle ko aate dekh sakte ho, seedha antar hai plain grasslands aur uchch Sal pedon ke beech mein. Dudhwa ek combination hai grasslands, lambi Sal pedon, aur bohot saari jal bharan. Aur haan, beend se bharpoor termite mounds ki lagaatar panktiyan, kuch unmein train se bhi uncha aur shayad mere se bhi bade. Ab kya yaad hai pehli line jo maine zikr ki thi? Main darwaze par baitha tha aur meri ek chappal neeche gir gayi. Aur vahan main, use ek jungle ki zameen par chhodkar dekh raha tha.
Lekin kisi tarah se train kuch meter aage roki. Zyadatar to yehi vajah thi, ki track cross karne ke liye kuch janwaron ko jaane diya jaaye. Aur muc...
