04 | metro | hindustantimes H I N D U STA N T I M E S , N E W D E L H I

W E D N E S DAY, J A N U A RY 1 9 , 2 0 1 1

new delhi 100

CENTENARY OF THE CAPITAL

■ A railway line was laid to the construction site for building the monumental buildings of New Delhi such as Parliament House, Rashtrapati Bhavan, South and North Blocks. The photograph shows the railway line going past the Jantar Mantar Observatory in
New Delhi. ALL PHOTOS COURTESY INDIAN RAILWAYS.

When Railways nearly

derailed New Delhi
OBJECTIONS Levelling the rocky Raisina Hills to transport construction material and
men was far less a problem than getting the railways to agree to remove its existing line
Avishek G Dastidar
■ avishek.dastidar@hindustantimes.com
■ Fairy Queen, the world's oldest steam locomotive commissioned in 1855, at the
NEW DELHI: Much before even a brick Great Place (Vijay Chowk) near Viceregal House (Rashtrapati Bhawan) in the mid
was laid at the site that is now New 1920s. The locomotives took part in a grand exhibition called "Transport through
Delhi, the architects of the new city had the ages" meant for the top brass of the government.

Royal welcome
to fight an interesting bureaucratic bat-
tle with the railways to secure two cru-
cial things, without which the new
Capital would not have been a reality.
Firstly, they needed a host of new
lines to be laid on the rocky ridges of

Raisina Hill to transport men and mate-
rial for 20 years. And secondly, they
needed the railways to remove the cru-
cial Delhi-Agra Chord line, which then
ran across the site earmarked for the
hexagonal All-India War Memorial
(India Gate), Kingsway (which later
became Rajpath), and much of the pres-
ent Lutyens' Bunglow Zone area.
The first was an engineering feat
considering the rocky terrain, and it
was achieved over a long period as con-
struction work expanded. A special rail-
way line, called the 'Imperial Delhi
Railway', was built to transport con-
struction material and workers. A cir-
cular track ran around the entire length
of the Council House (now Parliament
House). But it was the second task that
proved to be a bit of a stumbling block
in the initial years.
Correspondences between the archi-
tects and officials of East Indian Railway
Board reveal that the railway brass
came up with every reason, technical
or otherwise, they could find to keep
the Delhi-Agra Chord line where it was.
The Delhi Lines Committee set up
after World War I to advise the gov-
ernment on the pace and nature of
growth of the railways in the new
Capital, proposed a grand scheme to
this effect, suggesting even the location
of a new railway station for the city.
The Board in its reply said while it
■ The Old Delhi railway station.
■ A specially decked ‘royal train’ brought Emperor George V and Queen Mary to the new capital for Delhi Durbar. A temporary
station was constructed on the Hamilton Road side of Delhi station to handle the Durbar shuttle trains.
"generally agreed" with the scheme
proposed, it favoured a "gradual" pace
of investment "based on requirement
and experience" and that it would be
"necessary to modify the scheme from
time to time".
The prevailing theory was that since
(Old) Delhi already worked as a busy
junction in the area, hosting four zonal
railways, the new capital city did not
need to overhaul the whole network
around it.
"The line was of course realigned
after a few years, but initially the Board
appeared a bit cautious in its response
to the whole plan," said Vinoo Narain
Mathur, former Member Traffic, Indian
Railways, and author of Bridges,
Buildings and Black Beauties of
Northern Railway.
The Minto and Hardinge rail bridges
came up for this realigned line, which
was shifted along Yamuna and was open
in 1924. It stays that way even today.
TOMORROW
Temporary Capital: Civil Lines in north
Delhi enjoyed the distinction of being the
'temporary capital', from 1911 till the time
New Delhi was inaugurated in 1931.
GROWTH’S TIMELINE
The important years during which the railways expanded in the new
capital and changed New Delhi’s structure.
1918: Delhi Lines Committee proposes Ghaziabad and Delhi. The project cost
grand plans for new station and shifting
of prevailing rail lines out of sites ear-
marked for the new Capital.
1919-20: The diversion of the Delhi-
Agra Chord line started. Provision made
for a roadside station to serve the new
capital area (New Delhi station).
1924-25: Realigned Delhi-Agra Chord
line opened for public. Works opened as
part of the Delhi Railway Works Scheme
for the New Imperial Capital.
1926-27: East Indian Railway Board
sanctioned the making of a one-story
station building around a single platform
near Ajmeri Gate road overbridge. It later
became the New Delhi railway station.
1927-28: New Delhi Capital Works
project involving construction of 4.79
miles of new lines completed.
1933-34: Re-girdering of railroad
spans of the Yamuna Bridge between
nearly Rs 22 lakh.
1934-35: Remodelling of the Delhi
main station (old Delhi station), which
had become quite cramped by now.
Platforms were lengthened, yard
arrangements were altered and power
signalling was introduced.
1937-38: A new double storied
Divisional Office Building was construct-
ed on Chelmsford Road near Connaught
Place. The building cost Rs 3 lakh. New
facilities added at the New Delhi station
to handle coal traffic and also to serve oil
installations.
1938-39: The railways started taking
the garbage collected by Delhi municipal-
ity and dump it 10 miles away at a 'Horse
Shoe Jheel', near Badli. It was called the
Delhi Refuse Disposal Scheme.
1940-41: Air-conditioned coaches
introduced in the tri-weekly Delhi Mail
between Howrah and Delhi.
at Delhi station
Avishek Dastidar and Sidhartha Roy
■ avishek.dastidar@hindustantimes.com
NEW DELHI: When Emperor George V
and Queen Mary arrived in Delhi for
the coronation Durbar, they were first
welcomed at the Delhi main railway
station.
The specially decked 'Royal train'
arrived at the Delhi station (See pic-
ture on left) on December 7, 1911, a few
days ahead of the Delhi Durbar where
the King would announce the shifting
of capital from Calcutta to Delhi.
The King and Queen had first
landed at the Apollo Bandar (where
the Gateway of India was later built)
in Bombay and then took a train
to Delhi.
Nearly one lakh people converged at
the station to welcome the royal cou-
ple. The crowd included VIPs like
British officials, soldiers and about
100 princes from different Indian
states.
From the station, a five-mile pro-
cession led by the King crossed Red
Fort, Jama Masjid and Chandni Chowk
before ending at Kingsway camp.
During the Durbar, a temporary sta-
tion was constructed on the Hamilton
Road side of Delhi station to handle the
Durbar shuttle trains. The facilities
were dismantled the next year.
Another grand ceremony was held
for the royal couple at the Salimgarh
station before their departure after the
Durbar.
A GRAND ENTRY FOR THE
VICEROY
It was upon the railways that the task
of making a grand entrance for the
Viceroy rested in the late '20s.
There needed to be a station for
the ceremonial welcome and a road for
the Viceregal entourage to enter New
Delhi.
NEARLY ONE LAKH PEOPLE
CONVERGED AT THE STATION
TO WELCOME THE ROYAL
COUPLE. THE CROWD
INCLUDED VIPS LIKE BRITISH
OFFICIALS, SOLDIERS AND
100 INDIAN PRINCES.
Vinoo Narain Mathur, former
Member Traffic, Indian Railways, and
author of Bridges, Buildings and Black
Beauties of Northern Railway,
writes in his book, "The first phase of
the interchange station…which includ-
ed a platform for ceremonial purpos-
es, the State Entry Road and forma-
tion and the site for ceremonial recep-
tion of the Viceroy and dock platform
for unloading motors, horses and car-
riages."
In 1926 a passenger station came up
near Ajmeri Gate road over bridge in
place of Delhi Sadar station and later
morphed into a small station building
called "New Delhi".
"The platform still remains and the
State Entry Road connecting New Delhi
Railway station's Platform 1 with Outer
Circle of Connaught Circus is still in
use. There is a need to conserve these
as precious legacy of the shifting of the
capital of which the railways were a
vital part," said Shashanka Nanda,
member of Indian Railway Fan Club
Association (IRFCA).
TALK TO US
■ If you have a story to tell or pictures to
show of you and your family growing up in,
and with, New Delhi over the years, please
send them to us. We will want to showcase
the stories and pictures on our website and
the newspaper as well. Write to
newdelhi100@hindustantimes.com