16th June 2004: As I woke up in the morning and tuned in to the news, I was horrified to hear the shocking news. The Matsyagandha Express had derailed along the Konkan Railway route, killing about 20 people and injuring hundreds others.
Having traveled by this same train just 10 days before, I felt very close to having escaped death. In India, railway accidents have become very common and despite numerous attempts by the Government, nothing effective seems to have been done to prevent their frequent occurrence.
A brief history of the Konkan Railway
The Konkan Railway is one of the youngest amongst the Indian rail routes having inaugurated its line in the mid 1990s. The Konkan region, which lies on the Western coast of the country, stretches across 4 states, Maharashtra, Goa, Karnataka and Kerala. The region is rich in agriculture produce with its speciality being mangoes and cashewnuts. Infact the Ratnagiri alphonso mangoes are famed worldwide for their distinctive flavour. However, due to the absence of a railway link, this belt remained undeveloped industrially.
The Government had been avoiding the construction of railway lines on this route since it was a difficult terrain with a large number of hills and rivers emptying themselves into the Arabian sea. This meant that there would be a requirement of many tunnels and bridges. Finaly in the late 80s, a special corporation was set up for this purpose, Konkan Railway Corporation Ltd. which was authorized to construct and run this railway. The work was started in stages and finally completed in the late 1990s, providing a long-awaited lifeline to the millions of villages living along this stretch.
The train and its route
Matsyagandha Express plys between Mumbai in the north and Mangalore in the south. She usually has 2 unreserved coaches, a pantry, 12 second class sleeper coaches, two AC 3 Tier coach and one AC 2 Tier coach. There are no first-class coaches on this train. The presence of a pantry helps in supplying railway food to the commuters who may not have alternative sources of nourishment while traveling. Its railway code is 2619 in its Down journey from Mumbai to Mangalore, and 2620 Up on its way back.
The Matrsyagandha completes its picturesque journey in about 16 hours. Starting at around 2.00 p.m. from Lokmanya Tilak Terminus (better known as Kurla in Mumbai), she moves through the beautiful Konkan countryside stopping at various stations in Maharashtra like Khed, Chiplun and Ratnagir before reaching Madgaon in Goa at midnight. From here on, we miss the captivating scenery offered by Karnataka’s North Kanara and South Kanara districts because of the darkness. Moreover, the odd timings prevent the commuters traveling to these areas from conveniently using this train. Eventually, she reaches Mangalore station early next morning at 6.00 a.m.
Matsyagandha (2620 Up) commences its return journey at 2.00 p.m. from Mangalore and retraces its route to reach Kurla by 6.00 a.m. the next morning.
For whom
This is an ideal train for people traveling to Mangalore. There are a large number of bus services which take the slightly longer Mumbai-Pune-Belgaum-Hubli-Mangalore route. The duration of this journey is nearly 24 hours. For many, a long bus journey can be quite uncomfortable apart from the fact that there is no toilet available on board. Hence a train which can effectively reach you in much lesser time is quite a blessing.
However due to the odd timings, it becomes slightly awkward for people traveling to stations which appear in the midnight. For e.g. on its Down journey, commuters wanting to reach areas between Madgaon and Mangalore find themselves having to keep awake through the night awaiting their stations. On the other hand, on its return journey, if you need to reach places between Madgaon and Mumbai, you may find it difficult to fall asleep.
Other services
Since there is a pantry on-board, it takes care of the food part, particularly if you are not too fussy about the hygiene. The staff on board are quite co-operative and helpful. If you are a traveler by the AC class, the attendant will be glad to help you in case you have any problems with the AC or the beddings.
Finally,
A journey by Matsyagandha is quite a pleasant experience, short and sweet. Since nearly half the distance is traversed during the night, one doesn’t feel bored during the journey. The fact that you reach the final destination early in the morning helps office goers plan their return journeys very efficiently.
While the recent accident on the track can be a disturbing fact, Konkan railway has been noted for its low rate of accidents compared to the national average. We trust that the officials have woken up to the dangers of landslides and boulders on tracks etc. and would have taken effective measures to prevent such mishaps in future.
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