Nilgiri Mountain Railway Tour
The Nilgiri Mountain Railway was built by the British in 1908 in Tamil Naduis a railway. This railway still relies on its fleet of steam locomotives. In the month of july of 2005, this railway track was listed in UNESCO World Heritage Site. For the past years diesel engines have taken their control over the steam engines, but now also the tourist and local mens are asking for the steam locomotives.
The famous Hindi song “Chaiyya Chaiyya” from the film “Dil Se” featuring Shahrukh Khan was shot on the roof top of NMR.
History: This railway line dates back to 1854 when britishers thought of building railway to the uphill. Later british engineers started working for the railway track and branch of Mettupalaiyam opened in 1873. Later, J.L.L Morant, the district engineer of the Nilgiris, prososed building a rack railway, but the first offers were reclined. Later there were many engineers who worked and gave their thoughts and helping hands in building such a scenic railway line. The Nilgiri Rigi Railway Company Ltd was formed in 1885. Later the construction was started in 1891 and finally completed in 1908.
Route: This railway line covers a distance of 41.8 kms which travels through 208 curves, 16 tunnels and 250 bridges. The train climbs to the peak and takes around 4.8 Hr and while coming downhill it takes around 3.6 Hr. This railway track covers the steepest track in Asia with a maximum gradient of 8.33%.
Destination covered in this Tour:
Mettupalayam – Kellar – Coonoor – Wellington – Lovedale – Ootacamund