Farewell to Metre Gauge in Madras region

This is not a trip report.This is not a rail fan's technical writing.It does not contain any train numbers,station codes,engine numbers and other trivia which is immensely discussed by the typical rail fan.

This is just an article that describes the series of events that unfolded on the evening of 30th May 2007 and on the 31st May 2007.

It was around 1100 hrs.I got a telephone call from Poochi Venkat. He informed me about the plan of capturing photos and videos of the MG(Metre Gauge) train services between Tambaram-Villupuram,which would be terminated by the 1st of June 2007. He also informed me that he had obtained the permission to capture photos and videos in the section.I was happy to join him on this rare occasion.Ashwanth also joined us.





There are several reasons which made this a very rare occasion.The metre gauge section was the first major railway line to be built in South India.This section has served for many years beyond its centenary.This line(the original line started from Madras Beach) has very high quality of workmanship and accuracy.This railway line is denoted as the Madras-Thiruchirapalli(Trichinopoly) chord line.It was constructed by the erstwhile South Indian Railway.Relics of the railway company can still be found around the stations along this line.Till late '90s, this section was the backbone of rail travel in South India with major passenger and freight trains running through this line.This is the only place in the world where electric engines were deployed in the Metre Gauge.The Madras Beach-Tambaram section also happened to be the only place in the world to have witnessed Metre Gauge Electric Multiple Unit(EMU) traffic.

Therefore, the closure of this line marked an end of a significant chapter of transportation in South India, though not much of media attention or public awareness was given to the occasion,excepting a short article in the fifth page of a popular English daily, The Hindu.

The plan was well set out. Myself, Poochi Venkat and Ashwanth had planned to take a cab from Madras and proceed towards Villupuram so that we could return into the city by one of the last services in the Metre Gauge.We were forced to leave the city at an unearthly time of 0130 hrs so that we reach the station by day break to catch the return train.

The planning was done.But the implementation suffered some setback.Both myself and Ashwanth had overshot the alarm clock and slept extra than what could be afforded.I woke up at 0130 hrs and called Poochi Venkat and told that it was too late for me to join him and asked him to carry on.He said that Ashwanth was also late and so we can start late.By 0200 hrs, I was ready and waited for Poochi Venkat and Ashwanth.




We started on the journey towards Villupuram. We had an initial chat but it was soon engulfed by a quietness, with myself and Poochi Venkat looking at the city and its outskirts in a different angle(Madras at 0230 hrs was very different).There was no traffic within the city till Guindy, so the cab sped through.Once we reached Grand Southern Trunk Road(NH 45), the highway traffic began to accompany us.Late night intercity government buses, freight trucks, night work employees and private vehicles were the main constituents of the highway.

We saw a long freight train near Maraimalai Nagar. The road was clear enough to reach Chengalpattu(Chinglepet) fast. Till that point, we did not notice any rail traffic.But we caught a glimpse of lonely railway tracks with signal lamps glowing around them at regular distances.This was a nice view to look at.The rails shining with the occasional light from the nearby roads and villages, and the signal lamps glowing along with it,all added a nice and rare scene.

Prominent towns along the route include Chengalpet Jn, Madurantakam, Melmaruvathur, Acharapakkam, Tozhupedu, Tindivanam, Mailam, Vikravandi and finally Villupuram Junction.

Our friend Ashwanth was fast asleep now.Myself and Poochi Venkat were watching the railway line that was running parallel to the road.We saw the night trains(Broad Gauge) towards Madras making a fast move along small stations.Some trains were just leaving the intermediate stations.These trains will reach Madras by morning.




It so happened that our late start did not give much time for us to go all the way till Villupuram Junction, which is 164 Km/ 101.90 miles from Madras.So we decided to curtail the journey till Tindivanam.We entered the town of Tindivanam, made our way through the flyover and reached the station, alighted from the cab and made our way into the booking office at the station.There was no one to issue tickets.

We entered the station and went to the Station Master's room.He asked what made us come to his room.We showed him the permit letter to shoot photos and videos.He read the letter and assured all possible help.But the only help we wanted from him was 3 tickets to Tambaram and also arrival time of the first service in Metre Gauge.

He accompanied us to the booking office and by that time, the booking clerk had come to his seat.So we bought tickets and settled ourselves at the platform.We saw two more overnight trains(Broad Gauge) towards Madras at Tindivanam.These trains made a brief halt here and departed in a couple of minutes.



Meanwhile, we were waiting for our train(Metre Gauge) at platform number 1.There were some interesting things to note.The platform shared both Metre Gauge and Broad Gauge.But the platform retained the height of a Metre Gauge .The station had some of the erstwhile permanant way Metre Gauge relics like old signal posts, overhead electric wires.It was time for daybreak now and soon the rays of the morning sun started falling on the platform.We made use of this opportunity and captured a few photographs.They came out perfectly.



Our train arrived sharp on time.It was behind a diesel engine.It is a fast passenger train.So there was only a brief halt at Tindivanam.We hurried on to the engine driver's cabin and showed the permit letter and explained our reason for taking photos.They were glad to hear that and soon posed for a couple of snaps.The signal turned to yellow and we got into the first coach of the train.

The journey was a very different one.It was a typical MG coach,with narrow side passages. The height of the coaches are also relatively low which gives a 'toy train' effect.Since it was early morning, the whole coach was empty.So, Mr. Poochi Venkat positioned himself at one of the doors to unleash his exceptional photographic skills.It was excellent to watch a Metre Gauge train pick up speed and reach its peak speed.Since we were at the first coach,it was possible to hear the loud sound of the diesel engine working the train.If one peeps out of the door,the aroma of diesel combined with hot black smoke can be experienced.




Since it was a fast passenger, it did not stop at stations like Olakkur,Thozhuppedu,Acharapakkam,Karunguzhi and Ottivakkam.An MG train passing through all these stations at such speed parallel to the Broad Gauge is a marvel to look at.The line which served the South Indian people for more than a century was seeing the last day of service.It was indeed a very important day,but the people who depend on the MG service were not aware of the services being terminated on that day.






The three of us explained that this service will be terminated and a similar service will be operated in the Broad Gauge.The train neared Melmaruvathur,where a huge group of college students and people going for work entered the coaches.Here,our friend,Naveen,from Pondicherry joined us on our trip.He was delighted to see the MG train and clicked a few photographs from the tracks.

After few minutes,the train departed and sped along the straight stretch of track towards Chengalpattu
(Chinglepet) Junction.Here,a point to be stressed is the condition of the tracks.The line from Villupuram to Tambaram have been laid in an extremely straight manner as long as the geography of the land was favourble.The South Indian Railway company wanted to save costs of infrastructure.This prompted them to construct tracks in straight lines.A great additional advantage that this offered was the opportunity to pick up speed enormously.




If one has not seen the Diesel Engine powered Vaigai express(introduced in 1977, this train plies between Madras and Madurai and is famous for its convenient timings and punctuality) or the Electric Engine powered Pandian Express accomplish this feat, i would say that one has certainly missed something marvelous in life.Despite the speed limitations of the Metre Gauge,the drivers have shown impeccable performance by driving trains in perfect punctuality.Two reasons can be attributed to this.Excellent engineering work by the Britishers and fine driving skills.

At this point, it would be unjustified if i do not tell about the MG Electric Engines.This is the only place in the world that has witnessed Metre Gauge electric traction.The engines for this purpose were commissioned from Japan in 1969 and were in service till 2004.A few of them have been retained for preservation while the rest have been scrapped.

Let us now come back to our coach. Poochi Venkat planned for a video session.There were 2 more services towards Tambaram that morning,excluding the one we were traveling in. Poochi Venkat suggested that i alight at Chengalpet station and ask the drivers of the 2 trains to switch on their headlamps so that he could capture a brilliant video in one of the subsequent stations(Singaperumal Koil).






As per plan, i alighted at Chengalpet with the permit in hand,while Poochi Venkat,Ashwanth and Naveen continued their journey.Chengalpet station is a very pleasant place.There is a large lake adjacent to the station called Kolavai.The line from Madras makes a huge curve along the banks of this lake and enters the station.So,if one stands on the foot-over bridge, the train approaching the station can be seen from quite a distance.There is a line branching from the station towards Arakkonam(via Palur,Kancheepuram).Just after the station,there are 2 old sheds built in original British style with sloping roof.These were used as sheds for steam engines.Now they are used for storing old rails.






Platform 1,2 and 3 are for Metre Gauge.But platform 1 and 3 are no longer in use.There is also a loop line from platform 1 where a tanker rake has been stabled.All this will be history from the dawn of tomorrow.Metre Gauge has a charm in itself which cannot be articulated in words.It has to be seen and felt to know.There are some old MG style relics in platform 1 and 2 that are worth noting.The hexagon shaped cement benches around iron support pillars for seating passengers,a non-functional fruit juice stall, sloped roof supported by arched iron structures take you back by atleast half a century.

That was where i spent the first half of my day.There were 2 more hours for the next service of the MG train to arrive at Chengalpet Junction.So i decided to explore the MG platforms and take some photos using my phone.The platform was deserted.But the situation of the Broad Gauge platforms were just the opposite.Chengalpet is the terminating station for Beach,Tambaram and Thirumalpur bound Electric Multiple Unit(EMU) trains.Needless to say, all office goers and students relied heavily on the morning services to reach their places of work or study in Madras city.




Though there were services almost every ten minutes, there was huge crowd for each service.I was quietly watching all the acitvity standing over the foot over bridge.Soon it was around 0745 hrs.It was time for the Pondicherry bound fast passenger(Broad Gauge) to arrive.I was eagerly looking towards the long curve through which the train has to pass before entering the station.Minutes later,the train became visible.It was coming with good speed.The train was small and the diminutive view of the train from the bridge made the train look like the ones we see in children's movies.The train negotiated the curve and entered the station majestically.

This was followed by an express bound for Guruvayur,a temple town in Kerala.Amidst all this busy activity,the deserted Metre Gauge platforms appeared to emphasize a well known proverb,"ALL GOOD THINGS MUST COME TO AN END".What happened to be the king of in South India was now lying in its death bed.I decided to give it a fitting farewell by acknowledging its greatness by writing an article on it,which i have done successfully.I also captured some photographs.

Now it was time for the MG service to arrive.I took position at the place where the engine would stop.The train emerged from a curve.It was powered by a green and cream coloured engine.The train came into the station with dead slow velocity and finally made a halt.I quickly ran to the engine drive's cabin,showed the permit letter,explained about our trip,and told that Poochi Venkat was waiting at a station to capture a video and photograph of the train.They were happy to hear all this.I requested the assistant driver to switch on the headlamps and also to sounds the horn when the train stopped at the station where Poochi Venkat was standing.






He agreed.I thanked him very much.I also obtained his telephone number and promised him a copy of the video and photograph.It was soon time for the train to leave.Both the drivers hurried to the nearby refereshment stall to buy a cup of tea.I used this chance to capture a photograph of the cabin of the Metre Gauge engine.They returned and soon took the train out of the station.

In a couple of minutes, the last service of Metre Gauge bound for Tambaram emerged out of the curve.I was thrilled at the sight,since this service is never going to be operated at all hereafter and this is the last train in Metre Gauge ever, going towards Tambaram.This happened to be a fast passenger train and would not stop at all stations en route and most importantly,it would not stop at the station(Singaperumal Koil) where Poochi Venkat is waiting to capture the video.This provided an excellent opportunity for capturing a speeding MG train.

I rushed to the chief driver.Naveen had told that the chief is his friend.So i introduced myself to him as Naveen's friend.There were only 2 minutes.I had to explain about myself,our trip,the permit letter and the request to switch on the headlamps and horn at Singaperumal Koil.I achieved the feat.As usual,the drivers ran to the refreshment stall and ran into the engine with their cup of tea.They started multitasking by drinking it and also driving the train.I appreciate their dexterity.




I also got into the first coach of the train and settled myself at the door.The engine picked up speed as it covered the curve around the lake.I was blessed with hot black smoke from the engine.It was bliss.The smell of diesel,the unique sound of the Metre Gauge diesel engine and the hot air brushing past my face is an experience in itself.One cannot get it from a Broad Gauge at any cost.

The train neared Singaperumal Koil.I was getting ready to pose for the video near the door.The chief driver promptly kept giving the horn till the entire train sped past the station. Poochi Venkat was at the South end of the station,ready with his camera. waved at him.He was capturing the train with rapt attention.After that the train stopped at few stations and sped through the entire line.The run was excellent and a very memorable one.I stood by the door for the whole journey.The hot air combined with heat from the black smoke did not deter me from enjoying the beauty of the engine working the train.Now we reached the outer limits of Tambaram.Here a red signal stopped us.After a couple of minutes,we were allowed to proceed into the station limits.






I was surprised to find many railfans there.Ashwanth and Naveen were waiting there.I met Swaminathan and Ramesh for the first time. Poochi Venkat caught a local from Singaperumal Koil and reached Tambaram to join us.Here, we went on a walk to see the Metre Gauge railway yard,clicking pictures all the way.We were also lucky to see the rake formation for the evening MG services from Tambaram,which are the last MG services that Madras region is going to witness.






The official MG farewell ceremony is in the evening.Since i had lost sleep the earlier night, i could not attend it.But Poochi Venkat,Ramesh,Krishnakumar Kannan and Krishnakumar attended it.

An era of railways came to an end that evening,with the sun setting forever on the Metre Gauge.I returned home with memories of the railway gauge i had grown with.






I thank all the railfans for giving me company to make the farewell to MG a memorable one.I also thank Aravind and Ramesh for allowing me to use their photographs in this article.

Do leave your comments in the comments section.