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Train operations suspended on Kalka-Shimla line as heavy rainfall triggers landslides
At least 10 trains were cancelled up and down on the line, while four others were short terminated due to the natural disturbance.
Following heavy rain in parts of Himachal, including state capital Shimla, and subsequent mudslide, rail operations remained suspended on the Kalka-Shimla track, a world heritage site, on Saturday.
As per an official communication in the morning, at least 10 trains were cancelled up and down on the line, while four others were short terminated due to the natural disturbance.
However, the rail operations were resumed at 6.20 pm after the tracks were cleared and safety clearance was received, divisional railway manager (DRM), Ambala Division, Mandeep Singh Bhatia, said.
The divisional officials said that due to rain, muck blocked the tracks at a total of 23 sites on the track that has 18 stations with trees falling at two locations.
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After the incident, several officials from various departments rushed to the spot and operations were carried out to clear the tracks and resume rail operations at the earliest.
Due to downpour, the trial-run of the much-awaited soundproof panoramic Vistadome narrow-gauge coaches that started this week, were also cancelled for the day.
The coaches, designed at the Rail Coach Factory in Kapurthala, are being tested at a speed of 22 km per hour that would be taken to 28 km per hour in coming days. The increased speed is likely to reduce the travel time between Kalka and Shimla by over an hour.
DRM Bhatia told HT that a landslide was reported near Koti in Solan district, some 80 km from Shimla.
“Major disruption happened between Koti and Sonwara. Our teams cleared the track and rail operations resumed the same day. The trial-run of Vistadome coaches that remained cancelled for a day will be resumed on Sunday at the same speed,” he added.
Toy trains, as they are popularly called, run on the 96-km-long narrow-gauge railroad track that was chosen by UNESCO as a world heritage site in 2008.
