Toy train engine derails near Darjeeling

The engine of a Darjeeling Himalayan Railway toy train jumped off the tracks on Saturday, making it the second derailment in the last 10 days.

No person was injured in the incident though the road that runs alongside the railway track was blocked for several hours, a Northeast Frontier Railway (NFR) official said here.

The toy train, which has been accorded UNESCO World Heritage Site status, operates under DHR of the Katihar division of NFR.

“There was an incident of derailment of a light engine between Darjeeling and Ghoom stations at around 2.30 pm today,” the official at the NFR headquarters here said.

“The engine fell by the wayside. But there was no injury to any person. As the engine fell on the road, vehicle movement was affected. Cranes have been deployed to clear the engine,” he said.

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Another incident of derailment of a toy train engine occurred under DHR on February 24.

“There was no injury in that case too”, he added.

The NFR official said such incidents of derailment occur due to various reasons, with the primary cause being that the tracks cannot be modernised.

“Since it has the UNESCO World Heritage Site tag, we cannot re-lay the tracks using modern technology. The tracks are constantly supervised.

“Still, at times such derailments happen. But since the toy train runs at a very slow speed, no major damage or any injury is caused,” the official said.