A steam train to Darjeeling about 5 minutes before arriving at its final destination, passing by a fruits and vegetable shop. (Photo Cridet: Arne Hückelheim/Wikimedia Commons)
- Each division delegated with more powers;
- The Darjeeling Himalayan Railway (DHR), one of the five Heritage Hill Railways, falls under the North East Frontier Railway
Dimapur, April 26 (MExN): The Railway Ministry has decided to delegate more powers to Divisional Railway Managers (DRMs) and Directors of the five iconic Heritage Hill Railways of Indian Railways for enhancing their tourist potential and scientific preservation.
According to a press release from CPRO, North East Frontier Railway, the Executive Director/Heritage of the Railway Board Subrata Nath recently had issued a directive regarding the same.
Among others, it called for involving and encouraging local communities within the operational area of these railways should to participate in promoting tourism by providing them opportunities to showcase their art, culture, cuisine etc, the release said.
The five Hill Heritage Railways are - Darjeeling Himalayan Railway (DHR), Nilgiri Mountain Railway (NMR), Kalka Shimla Railway (KSR), Kangra Valley Railway (KVR) and Matheran Light Railway (MLR).
According to the directive, the respective DRMs, under whom the concerned Hill Railway operates, can treat these Hill Railways as separate activity and profit centres of the Division concerned.
The DRMs are empowered to approve all regular and seasonal train services i.e. Joy Ride trains, Charter trips and Holiday Special train trips etc. to meet tourist and local demand, the release said.
The division concerned can also engage any suitable agency for designing, packaging and marketing of tourist packages on these hill railways, it added.
