"India is a land of dreams" "Where images, however fleeting are remembered long after the journey's end" "The railway is her lifeline crossing not only distances" "But bridging the boundaries of her many cultures" "For over 900 million people the railway has become a great unifier" "over one-and-a-half million must work to keep it going" "The great Indian railway touches the lives of everyone" "For nothing is more a part of this country than the trains which are part of its soul" "Over a century ago the sound of the steam locomotive could be heard across the land as it rolled through the desert and the plains of India" "In those days villages and cities were isolated by vast distances and the coming of the train woul change them forever" "Legends were told of the great fire eater that walked on lines of steel and breathed white clouds of smoke" "Those who did not fear it came to see it for themselves" "In remote outposts where there were no stations banyan trees often marked the train stop" "And people anticipated its arrival like the coming of a great ship" "There was always entertainment to greet the travelers celebrating the trip for themagical event that is was" "What had taken weeks by bullock cart could now be made in a matter of days" "The hero was the driver" "He was assigned one engine for life and cared for it as though it were a part of him making sure it was fed coal and watered" "It was like a living creature preparing for the long journey ahead" "If there ever was a heart and soul of the railway it began here with these locomotives" "They were the symbol of the British Empire and held the romance of an age when men and machines united the country for the first time" "But this era couldn't last forever" "Now, the superfast express trains command the rails and are moving India into a new century" "The railway is a living legacy of the British, who dominated the subcontinent for nearly two hundred years" "They laid down the first rails in 1850 and by Indian independence dozens of railways reached across hundreds of princely states and territories." "Today, all have been merged into one" "Stretching nearly 40,000 miles and connecting over 7,000 stations it is the largest railway under a single management in the world" "The frontier Mail, the Tamil-Nadu Express the Punjab Mail all long-distance trains, renowned in history" "But one of the oldest is the Grand Trunk Express and it travels nearly the length of the country" "Indians love to travel whether it be on a religious pilgrimage or to visit relatives far away" "They pack everything and bring everyone" "They can go anywhere in the country for less than seven dollars" "Space has a whole different meaning on an Indian train" "People like to sit next to each other talk and share stories" "And a stranger isn't a stranger for long" "More than 11,000 trains" "Travel through India everyday" "But it's in the three-tier second-class coaches that the real spirit of the country can be found" "If anyone wants to know what India is all about you could just travel in one of these trains and you could talk to people you see" "You'll actually meet people from different parts of the country and you can actually have a look into the various cultures you see, now there's a cultural diversity in India" "You can actually enjoy this cultural diversity traveling in such long trains say from which go from one end of the nation to the other end" "Such long trains you can enjoy if you are really interested you'll definitely you will experience it" "Every Indian train has ticketless passengers who are part of its character:" "Gypsies, beggars, and sweeper boys who make their living earning tips between stations" "I meet every type of people here" "Maybe they are millionaires they are the poorest" "They are engineers, doctors, bankers" "Every type of persons I am meeting here" "And when I travel I talk" "I have an opportunity to talk to them make friendship with them" "We sometimes come closer to them and we become family friends for life" "For centuries explorers have been drawn to the east" "In the 1660's the British took possession of the strand of islands that curved into the Arabian Sea" "They would make them the great port city of Bombay" "Their Gateway of India still stands as a memory of their empire's former glory" "Bombay's now one of India's fastest-growing cities" "And the British presence seems unchanged at Victoria Terminus" "Opened in 1888 it was built on the site of the first railway station" "But now it's the headquarters of Central the busiest of nine zones in the Indian railway" "From this historic place one of the most important me in the railway oversees his domain" "This is the seat of power of the General Manager" "Every morning" "Birendra Vishnu calls upon his officers to account for every detail in a monumental system" "From major accidents to minor delays nothing escapes his attention" "It was from this same office that the British ran their railway" "And with independence in 1947 they turned it over to Indian leadership" "But now the G. M. Controls a far more complex network with 200,000 men beneath him he runs 2,000 trains a day" "Ah Madhan" "What is happening today?" "What are your prospects of loading?" "Sir, yesterday, we made 8.5" "Alright, you just speak to C. M. E" "Your diesel utilization has slumped" "Your diesel utilization is slumped" "Your six-wagon balances in all the yards are heavy" "The stable loads are heavy Just speak to C. M. E." "Hello Madhan?" "Ah, Rambu Rao, utny shed for the last fifteen days it has been having very high failure rate" "Vishnu is more than a figurehead" "If something goes wrong he shoulders the full responsibility" "And every month he makes it a point to leave his office and visit his men in the fiel" "Like a present-day maharaja" "Vishnu holds court in his private inspection coach with full kitchen staff in attendance and all the ceremonies inherited from his predecessors" "The Indian Railways constitute the lifeline of India" "And it was given to us by the British" "They gave us two things" "The Indian railways and a very powerful administrative system run by the bureaucrats" "We are now going on an inspection trip" "And during this inspection trip we propose to go over the entire railway lines" "See what management techniques are there" "See how the cabins, the points and the people who manage these points look after themselves and look over the equipment" "Each one has his area of responsibility" "And a super-check has to be exercised" "So when we go out line our objective is to find out what deficiencies are there" "And take measures to overcome them" "No single person can possibly check on everything" "The system depends on workers whose dedication goes largely unseen" "Under the eyes of the cabinmen tens of thousand of coaches transport more than 12 million people a day" "And one mistake can cost thousands of lives" "For this is a human railway where the strength of a lever man means the safe passage of a train" "It is the largest employer in the world" "Officially, 1.6 million work for the railway" "But Vishnu estimates that nearly 80 million people depend on it for their livelihood" "The Grand Trunk Express continues southbound" "The trip from New Delhi to Mardras will last 38 hours" "But for many, the journey is an adventure" "And it doesn't matter how long it takes" "Long-distance trains have become temporary homes for village India" "And those on board are captive audiences for ticketless travelers who earn their keep providing everything from entertainment to food" "On a train, meals are a big event and passengers are constantly being solicited with different kinds of fare" "Twelve bearers run the length of 22 coaches waiting on as many as 2,000 people" "They serve up to 400 hot railway meals twice a day" "In the pantry car cooks prepare food to suit the religious mandates of an Indian train nonveg or vegetarian for Muslims, Hindus, Christians" "The hardest job may be in trying to satisfy the tastes of so many" "And tastes do change from north to south" "The food is for a man it is very sufficient" "It is comfortable yes exactly it is more than sufficient for one's capacity" "It is given to us because here you have rice and then dal" "We call it the grains and then vegetables" "Also, available then it is a full meal for us" "If there is a spirit of the railway it is found in the thousands of small stations which have become part of the fabric of Indian life" "They are centers where everyone gathers" "And those who can't afford to travel will come just to watch the trains" "The most impressive arrivals have always been the broad gauge steam locomotive lovingly called the "black Beauties"" "They ride on the widest rails and their wheels stand taller than a man" "But their presence is now becoming rare and those who grew up with them will miss them the most" "Black is beautiful" "Our steam locos are our black beauties" "We feel with the phasing out of steam locos as if we are doing away with one of our kit and kin with whom we have blood relations" "All throughout Eastern Railway loco sheds are busy preparing their engines for a Black Beauty Contest" "It is a competition like no other" "Only the best engines are entered and to win the Black Beauty is the highest honor a shed could have" "Dhanbad, Rampur Hat, Sahibganj" "Asansol, Jha Jha... five sheds hurry to add the finishing touches transforming these workhorses into the beauties that they really are" "This possibly should be the very last Black Beauty Contest of Indian Railways" "We mean to bring to you the effect of the steam locos when they were is their heydays" "To show how they looked How they worked" "And for just one more time perhaps lived and outlived the glory of those days when the steam locos bore the burnt of Indian Railways" "The reason behind a Black Beauty Contest remains very much valid today because perhaps this is the last time that we are going to be able to have such a contest anywhere on the Indian Railways perhaps in the rest of the world like China and other" "steam will continue" "But on Indian Railways the pressures of economics have forced us to give up the lovable old monster of steam" "With its lovable sound and unique visual pleasure which children loved and therefore aspired to become locomotive drivers when they grew up" "It helps people to remember that the steam has served a glorious era from the old days if you look back into the past" "There is intense competition amongst all those who have slaved on these locomotives these 10 competing locomotives and therefore each one wants to win the prize" "Therefore the judges are under intense scrutiny perhaps more than the judges are in real life" "And they have to therefore, make it as scientific as possible" "They have, therefore divided the system of grading into three distinct groups" "One is decoratio for which they give 25 percent marks the functionality, which is we are giving as much as 50 percent marks and also the ceramic blanketing is being given 25 percent marks" "And I think that the judges will be totally fair and clear in their judgment and may the best loco win" "What is important when you see a when the whole thing should be uniformly red" "The moment you see a black spot that's the time there when there's a hole and then the firebox can burn" "So when you are seeing the fire you have to see that it looks uniformly red that there's no localized black spot" "Plus the thickness, the firebox should be uniform..." "Those are things we have to look for how he is maintaining the fire very important" "Everybody wants to win and none more than Mr. Arora a shed foreman who has worked in steam since he was 17" "Onboard Rampur Hat's engine he is never at a loss for words" "explaining that even with all the hard work they had just run out a time" "Like all of the engines the judges take into account how efficiently she runs" "They put her through the paces while Arora hangs on like a doting father" "Those bosses, my examiners they have been very much pleased with the work which you boys with my staff, with my driver and the other fellows you know all the whole" "Rampur Hat has done in decorating this locomotive in making it fit mechanically sound and they have checked all the points and I think we have got if not 10 percent then at least 90 percent" "Now we should leave the results to Almighty God you know" "Almighty God is there" "They parade in all their glory and anticipation runs high" "Now it's up to the judges to reveal the last Black Beauty winner" "Nandini will claim the price" "For Nandini and her crew this is an occasion to remember" "But they know as they back her into the shed that their victory is bittersweet" "For despite the fact that the black beauties have proven themselves today another fate awaits them" "In northeast India a little toy train climbs the foothills of the Himalaya the tallest mountains in the world" "Every morning" "Buddhist monks look towards the East welcoming the sun to the remote mountain town of Darjiling" "Darjiling has always been a frontier town where an oriental look enters the faces of India" "But is also tells of another heritage" "The British loved the climate so much they mad it a hill station to escape the heat of the plains below" "And the sounds of the train they brought echo up from the valleys" "For the people of the mountain the train has always been a part of their lives" "In the days of the British raj it carried the famous Darjiling tea down from the plantations" "Eighteen little locomotives run back and forth on the Darjeeling-Himalayan line" "The youngest is 70-years-old and the oldest is a hundred-and-five" "Everyday, several trains climb from the plain of the Ganges in about the same amount of time it took Mark Twain when he came to Darjiling in 1896" "The beginning of every trip is a ritual for the six-man crew" "Each engine is an antique heirloom that's been entrusted to their care" "And they look after them like living breathing creatures feeding and watering them" "The fireman knows that only a good head of steam can carry the train up to 7,407 feet to reach the highest station in all of Asia" "With two men riding on front ready to throw sand on the rails for traction and a coal breaker riding on top the train finally sets out" "Each engine has its own distinct personality" "And no one understands his better than the driver, Mr. Gurung" "Like his father he was assigned this same loco for life" "And everyone along the way knows its him by the sound of his whistle" "For Sherab Tenduf one of many who have fought for its preservation it's a reminder that some things do stay the same" "And not to have it would be a great loss" "When I was young people really didn't travel that very much" "The airplane hadn't arrived" "And the train was an important image for all of us" "An escape to the outer world" "A chance to see something over the mountains" "You had this train which represented to us an opportunity for adventure" "We used to jump on and off the train" "Tickets weren't that important" "There was the chugging the sound of the movement of the train" "The energy of this train it was like a little Tibetan terrier" "The obstacles that the British overcame in 1881 are still impressive even now" "On the foothills of the himalaya they had little room to maneuver and only by ingenious loops and switchbacks and the narrowest of tracks could the little "toy train" reach the top" "If the train does not run we do feel that there is something absent and we do feel it very strongly" "But as long as it is there yes it's a part of life" "And everyday if we don't see it we see that something is definitely is missing" "India is a country of villages" "More than 70 percent of its people live out their lives in a day-to-day existence where there is no hurry" "And only the changing seasons mark the passage of time" "This is where the railway is a lifeline bringing these remote areas in touch with the rest of the world." "In south India" "Palur is one of thousands of small way stations which haven't changed much since British colonial times" "It is a single line track off the main route to Madrasm and only four trains a day stop here" "Mr. Govindarajan is the stationmaster" "He took a demotion from a bigger station choosing Palur to be near his sick wife and to live out his days in the peaceful quiet of the country" "He shares his responsibilities with amakshi a railway widow who is officially the sweeper-porter" "Between the two of them they run the entire station" ""Palur" means "milk village"" "and for the last hundred years the villagers have relied on the milk train to carry their cans to the city markets" "But before the train arrives" "Govindarajan must coordinate with other stations to make sure that his line is clear for the coming train" "It is a time-honored system in place since the days of the British a ball token must be carried by the driver giving him the right-of-way on a single-line track" "At every station he must pass the token and pick up another only then will he have permission to continue on his way" "I am asking line clear" "The line is officially open and amakshi can change the signals that will indicate to the driver that the track ahead is safe" "She will pass the ball on to the driver and prepares the cane pouch" "She is one of the few women working directly with the trains but gained her job after a great loss" "Her husband had been a fireman on a steam engine and committed suicide when he didn't make driver" "It is the railway's custom to give a position to the widow" "And amakshi will have a job for life" "As the train comes in the ball token is handed over" "Now the driver can move safely into the next section" "Mr. Govindarajan has dedicated 33 years of his life to the Railway and understands better than anyone how much these trains mean to rural India" "But changes are coming and he has received word that with his retirement his post will not be filled and Palur station will be closed" "They tell him that with only a few trains a day there just isn't enough profit" "Soon the trains won't be stopping here and people will have to take the roads" "He will be the last station master of Palur" "On Southern Railway, south of Madras the Pondicherry Special makes her last journey." "Nothing evokes the romance of the railway like a steam engine" "Her arrival into Pondicherry station is a grand event and she will bring the platform to life for one last time" "This is one of the few holdouts of steam" "The locomotives were phased out of the big cities years ago and now even small stations are seeing them vanish" "But perhaps the greatest loss will be felt by those who have steam in their soul" "And Dhandapani is one who'll feel it the most" "A third-generation railwayman he became what his father a gatekeeper always hoped he would be a driver the pride of the line" "Now he's been given the honor of takin the Pondicherry Special on her final run" "His engine may be old and worn down by age but Dhandapani knows that what he is doing is something noble and historic" "And he's always been proud of his duty" "In India, the relationship between railwaymen has always been like family" "The firemen, guards, cabinmasters and gatekeepers all have developed a deep bond through the years" "Stationmasters on the single line tracks and the drivers of steam know that a time is coming to an end" "Now, the trading of the cane pouch marks the changing of the guard" "Both Govindarajan and Dhandapani have since been retired the Pondicherry Special has been condemned" "And little Palur station is now closed forever" "Varanasi, Madurai, Barddhaman these are some of the sheds where generations of workers were born to serve the locomotive with a craft held sacred" "And where it was always believed that a father's knowledge would one day be handed down to his son" "We'll be closing down this steam loco shed in a couple of months when the last of these Black Beauties would have move out" "This shed had something like 71 locomotives a few years back" "What we feel sad about the whole thing is that something which fascinated every railway traveler over many many years is dying out" "And what I feel personally sad about is that with the locomotives is dying out a breed of men who had nerves of steel they were men of muscle understood metal what it was all about" "What we get today in lieu is the diesels the electrics, which have really no muscle in them" "They're all technology" "There's no spirit behind them" "To us as old railway men they are really not comparables" "This shed where the epitaph is now being written will see a gloomy picture in a few months from now" "And we'll lose ever so slightly a part of our past something on which the railways all over the world have survived for the last hundred plus years" "With that a lot of our soul will be gone" "Everyday more and more black beauties are being pulled from the working lines" "The iron beasts are now easy prey to scavengers who will take even their last bits of precious coal" "The once busy sheds are becoming graveyards" "For loco foreman Mr. Arora returning is like visiting old friends" "You see this is a tragic part on my life" "I was born and brought up with this steam locomotives" "Now I feel as if I am left all alone and I am standing like a helpless man can do but this is the demand from my nation" "I feel as if a most loving member of my family is being cut into pieces in my presence an old man, who is looking after the children and he is standing and he cannot do anything for his children at this dying stage" "Feel so bad" "Really I feel like weeping" "I become helpless creature but as I've told you, a day one has to die" "Similarly, they have also to vanish one day or the other" "All across India steam sheds have turned into auction houses" "The locomotives await the highest hidder" "They are the businessmen who have waited for the sheds to close before making their move" "They buy the engines which are to them, worth only their weight in scrap metal" "Most of these men of steam will choose to stay with the railway" "Some will have to be retrained and others may have to relocate far from their homes" "But for all a way of life is over" "There will be one survivor of steam and by government ruling it will remain" "It is the Darjeeling-Haimalayan toy train the oldest mountain railway in India" "She is the symbol of the railway and evokes the emotional and spiritual ties which the country has for its trains" "The men who run her stand for the many who have devoted themselves to keeping the lifeline going" "And for all those whose lives it touches this will always be the great Indian railway"