The only train on Indian Railways having a dining car, Deccan Queen will be running anew from June 22. It won't be the only one to be upgraded to LHB coaches. The Central Railway is planning to upgrade other trains as well in this year. Sources said that the dining car inside the Deccan Queen have been redone. On June 1, the Central Railway showcased the renewed Deccan Queen train at Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus station.
This green and red coloured train with white spots, has the distinction of being among the first trains to be in the league of fastest train of India. On June 1, this train completed 92 years and has been replaced with LHB coaches plus a Vistadome coach as well.
It is the only train to have a dining car with kitchen. "We have replaced the furnitures inside the dining car. We have put up sturdy metal chairs which are quite heavy and would not move much even though the train would travel at high speeds. We have also redesigned the kitchen where electric stove has been installed," said a CR official.
The General Manager of Central Railway AK Lahoti inspected the General Second Class & AC Chair Car coaches, Vista Dome coach and the Dining Car and Kitchen. The Deccan Queen is one of the most prestigious train which has been successfully running for the past 92 years.
"It is the only one of its kind on Indian Railways to have a Restaurant Car. The design of dining car and exterior has been designed by the National Institute of Design, Ahmedabad in co-ordination with Railway Board, Research, Design and Standards Organization (RDSO), Integral Coach Factory (ICF), Chennai and Central Railway with inputs from the general public. The introduction of LHB coaches would mean more safer and pleasant travelling experience,” said Lahoti.
The Deccan Queen had its inaugural run on 1st June 1930 which was a major landmark in the history of the Great Indian Peninsula Railway, the forerunner of the Central Railway. This was the first deluxe train introduced on the railway to serve 2 important cities of the region i.e. Mumbai and Pune and was aptly named as ‘’Queen of Deccan’’ (‘’Dakkhan ki Rani’’).
Initially, the train was introduced with 7 coaches having only first class and second class accommodation. Third class was introduced in 1955. The coaches of the original rakes were replaced in 1966 by anti-telescopic steel bodied integral coaches built by Integral Coach Factory, Perambur and no of coaches were increased to 12. The Vistadome coach was attached from August 15, 2021.
The composition with the introduction of LHB Coaches from June 22 will be four AC Chair Car, 8 Second Class Chair Car, One Vista dome coach, One AC Dining Car, One General Second class cum Guard’s brake van and Generator Car.
Deccan Queen, initially, had only first class and second class accommodation. The first class was done away with on January 1, 1949. The second class was redesigned as the first class and it was used until June 1955 when the third class was introduced on the train.
The rake was changed in 1995 with the following special features:
* All newly manufactured or about a year old, air brake coaches.
* The 5 first class chair car in the old rake were replaced by 5 AC chair cars providing an additional seating capacity of 65 in a dust-free environment. Also the 9-second class chair cars provide additional seating capacity of 120 seats compared to the old coaches. Thus, new rake provided a total seating capacity of 1417 as against 1232 seats in the old rake i.e. an increase of 15%.
* The dining car offers table service for 32 passengers and has modern pantry facilities such as microwave oven, deep freezer and toaster. The dining car is also tastefully furnished with cushioned chairs and carpet.
Total trains with CR: 95
Total trains with LHB coaches on CR: 56
Number of trains to be replaced with LHB coaches in 2022-23: 12.
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