Let’s keep our histories on line

An Art Deco train halts at Haven Street station on the Isle of Wight`s Island Line

Does your father work on line or off line?" A septuagenarian aunt had thrown this surprising question at me after Sunday mass while I was on a family visit to Madras (sorry, most Anglo Indians [AIs] are yet to adopt the word ‘Chennai') Why does she want to know if my father is working on a computer/laptop, and even if he wasn't what was it to her? My puzzled face was the giveaway for the well-meaning relative. "I wanted to know if your father worked for the Railways, and if he did, was his job on the train itself, as an engine driver, guard, TC (on line) or did he work at the railway station and in any other related department (off line)." Suitably embarrassed with my ignorance over these common phrases from the AI lexicon, I informed her that several relatives were employed in both sections in pre and post 1947 India. This part-hilarious, part-insightful episode was a trigger of sorts that instilled in me my fascination with the Railways.

Hailing from a community that prides itself on being one of the torchbearers of India's largest employer, from then onwards at family reunions, I would pay close attention to listen in about "the good ole days when we rode the lines across India's length and breadth," as one retired uncle had beautifully summarised about being a railway man all his life. Talk over lamb roast luncheons and devil fry dinners would almost always veer towards a prized engine model, a quirky British boss or the Railway Institute's Christmas Ball. It was fascinating for this wide-eyed teenager to hear about and imagine this fantastical time, especially since my idea of the trains was a far-less charming one. After all, it was mostly about bagging a fourth seat on the suburban local.

My interest and later, research about the city's heritage resulted in a closer understanding of the Railways since Bombay/Mumbai was at the heart of the action when the first railway train chugged all the way to Thanah (today's Thane). Over time, I realised that we as a nation had a proud, rich legacy. But soon enough it became evident that we also lacked a rail museum in the city to fully showcase this history. We are yet to go the full distance to tom-tom its glory days; barring the visitors' viewing section inside CSMT (formerly Victoria Terminus). Their intent might be genuine but it resembles a drop in the vast ocean. Barring a few stations, like CSMT, Churchgate, the recent UNESCO-honoured Byculla and Bandra, the others on the three lines are as uninspiring as can be; there is no interest to retain its links with its origins, be it the original structure or station furniture (read: identity). Worse, Mumbai Central station's façade had been painted over a while back; showing scant regard for its place in the city's rail history.

Recently, this vacuum was reiterated when I read a news article in The Londonist that announced heritage rides in London, in an Art Deco-styled train from 1938. The article also mentioned that of the 1,100 such cars, several were in use till 1988. In fact, some were recycled on the Isle of Wight's Island Line but in 2020, those were replaced by trains from London's 1980s Underground stock. The antennae went up. I had actually travelled on one of these beauties while on a trip to London that included a short detour to the Isle of Wight. It remains one of my most memorable rail journeys. Short as it may have been, even then, I had made a mental note of the missed opportunities that lay back home. Matheran's toy train could take many a lesson or two from here. The journey included a halt to visit a well-stocked railway memorabilia store, apart from passenger-friendly facilities including family picnic sit-out spaces that allowed pets, thereby making it an engaging, all-round experience.

After reminiscing a bit about that journey, I shared this news with my colleague, the respected rail historian, Rajendra B. Aklekar, and enquired if he was aware if the Railways had any similar plans in the pipeline. He revealed the (disappointing) news that the city's old EMU Jessop-made local trains were actually cut into half and used to collect and move garbage from along the railway tracks. What a shame. I am beginning to wonder if preserving such legacies actually matters at all. Do the powers-that-be see any merit in executing such ideas? Do they believe that such attempts to showcase our rail history are a waste of money and effort? Are we better off modernising stations into unrecognisable avatars, and letting these remnants of the past get phased out? So many questions, really.

Those glory days reminisced by my AI relatives won't return but surely, we owe much to the Railways' founding fathers and their visionary plans that propelled India in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. And these showcases - be it a museum or reliving the joy if travel in a heritage train - will go a long way in saluting their great contribution towards nation-building, and be the ultimate tribute to all those who worked on line and off line.

mid-day's Features Editor Fiona Fernandez relishes the city's sights, sounds, smells and stones...wherever the ink and the inclination takes her. She tweets
@bombayana

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