Lord Krishna's Birthplace

Mathura is the birthplace of Lord Krishna, who spent his childhood in nearby Vrindavan.

India's railways back in the mid-1970s had plenty of steam locos in use. I was working in New Delhi and went to Delhi Junction Station from time to time to see what was happening. On the broad gauge, some old SGS 0-6-0s were engaged on pilot duties, but most engines were standard modern classes: WP 4-6-2; WG 2-8-2 and CWD 2-8-2. Also on station duties and relatively modern were the class WW 0-6-2T - only four were built. And once a day, another modern, but rarer, type arrived from the Punjab in the shape of a WL Light Pacific.

I wondered where I might be able to see older classic loco types somewhere near to Delhi, so browsed through 'World Steam' magazine, the 'Bible' for enthusiasts interested in railways outside the UK. In those days, not everything was known about every working, and discoveries often relied on reports from a lone enthusiast who had ventured to rarely visited places. But this time, I spotted something in a list of loco shed allocations. About 220 kms from Delhi on the main line to Bombay, there was a small shed at Bayana Junction, on the Western Railway, whose allocation included four 'H' class 4-6-0s of classic British outline, a standard design advanced by BESA, the British Engineering Standards Asociation, in the early 1900's. Looking through the 'All India Railway Timetable' it seemed to me the locos must be shedded there to work local passenger trains twice a day up the main line to Mathura Junction or on a branch from Bayana to Agra. Now Mathura was easy to get to from Delhi, with a good express train service, including the 'Taj Express' taking tourists to Agra for the Taj Mahal, one of the Seven Wonders of the World. So I decided on a trip to Mathura. I had been through there on an earlier assignment in India, when I was one of those tourists on the steam-hauled 'Taj Express' with its specially rostered gleaming WP Pacific in a blue and white livery to match the carriages used on the service. On that occasion, in March 1974, the station pilot at Agra had been another British classic loco, an XA/2 Pacific – sadly I didn't get a picture. By October 1976, it had gone, replaced by a CWD.

On 10 October 1976 I caught the diesel -hauled Punjab Mail from New Delhi, leaving at 7.35am, to travel the 141km to Mathura Junction, due at 9.57am. The morning service from Bayana left there at 8.20am, and was due in Mathura at 10.45am, a journey of 75km, with ten intermediate stops – a real local stopping train. I waited in the shade until a few minutes before 10.45am,then took up a position at the end of the platform in the hot sun. I wondered if my hopes would be dashed when the train appeared. It would probably be headed by a WG or CWD; four of the latter were shedded at Bayana.

Right on time, the train hove into sight around the curve into the station hauled by – yes, an 'H' 4-6-0, No. 24289. Success! The three-coach train was well patronised, the loco looked great in its Western Railway livery, was respectably clean and ran like a sewing machine.

With its unmistakable British design, No.24289 would have looked at home on the old Great Central Railway coming out of Marylebone.

It left on the return to Bayana at 1.5pm, same three coaches with plenty of passengers.

Metre gauge was another attraction at Mathura, operated by the North Eastern Railway, including an 11km long branch to Vrindavan with two return trains each day - one of which was a mixed. It was worked by another classic BESA designed loco, the 'P' class 4-6-0, and I was fortunate to see one trundle light engine through Mathura Junction station. Delhi also had a big metre operation with modern standard YP 4-6-2s and YG 2-8-2s, plus diesels. There were some YL 2-6-2s at Delhi Sarai Rohilla shed, but they were inactive.

All in all, a successful day out.

For further information on Mathura Junction, see https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mathura_Junction_railway_station

The 8.20am from Bayana Junction, with a goodly complement of passengers, rolls gently into Mathura Junction dead on time at 10.45am with classic British built motive power in the shape of 'H' class 4-6-0 24289, a sight to behold on 10 October 1976.

The BESA designed loco was constructed by the North British Loco Co in 1922, works no.22894, and would have worked top passenger trains when new.

24289 going for servicing and turning at the small sub-shed here. The four-legged one takes no notice.

The loco puffs away from Mathura heading for home with another good haul of passengers aboard.

Above: WP Pacific 7733 - in blue and white livery to match the carriages - at Mathura on the Taj Express, Delhi - Agra, receives attention before proceeding on 1 October 1976. This was actually Train 80, not 79 as displayed on the loco - that was the return working. 7733 was built by Chittaranjan Loco Works as recently as 1966, in the last batch constructed - no less than 755 WPs were made between 1947 and 1967, impressive machines.

Below: 7733 again, this time on 10 October 1976 with Train 8, Toofan Express, Delhi - Calcutta, leaving Mathura and heading for Agra, where it will be replaced by another steam loco - a CWD 2-8-2 on 3 October 1976. Train 8 left Delhi at 10.05 and was due in Calcutta at 18.24 the following day, after a journey of 1437 kilometres.

I don't know for certain, but a top link loco like 7733 rostered for the most important trains may still have been allocated its own regular crew.

BESA type 4-6-0 'P' class 31599 on the metre gauge at Mathura, for working the short branch to Vrindavan,10 October 1976.

Three of the class were allocated about 100 km away, at Kasganj - 31599 was lettered MTJ, so Mathura Junction was its sub-shed. Though the class was mostly built in the UK and India, 31599 was constructed in 1931 by Schwartzkopf in Berlin.