All aboard India’s first passenger train with the Google Doodle!

If you’re a fan of spotting Google Doodles, this is a great week for you.

A day after Google honoured Swiss mathematician Leonhard Euler with a doodle, the search giant has come up with one more to commemorate the 160th anniversary of the first passenger train in India.

The doodle is a simple affair, with a steam locomotive pulling a train. The engine forms the first “O” in “Google”. The whole doodle wears a very old-worldly look and resembles a painting more than a drawing. The train is surrounded by open fields and palm trees, trying to bring back the charm of the 19th century.

The first passenger train in India ran between Bori Bunder in Bombay and Thane on April 16, 1853, signaling a new era in travel and communication in the country. The train was pulled by three locomotives – Sultan, Sindh and Sahib and had about 400 passengers on board its 14 carriages. The journey of the first passenger train in India lasted for a good 57 minutes between Bori Bunder and Thane and had just one halt.

Celebrating the 160th anniversary of the first passenger train

 

Interestingly, this was only the first time a passenger train was run in India. The first rail line had come up near Chintadripet Bridge in the then Madras Presidency in 1836 as an experimental line.

After the first passenger train was run between Bombay and Thane, the first passenger railway line in north India was opened between Allahabad and Kanpur in 1859.

The train doodle is a slightly less interactive one this time round and slightly inaccurate too, given the fact that the train was actually pulled by three locomotives.

To celebrate Euler’s birthday yesterday, the doodle was a partly animated one. The doodle included geometrical figures and mathematical formulae, scribbled on a partially yellow piece of paper. Some of the mathematical elements on the doodle, included the mathematical constant, his polyhedral formula, now written as v-e+f=2.
 
An important name in the field of mathematics, Euler’s genius can be affirmed from the fact that he is the only mathematician to have two numbers named after him – the Euler’s number in calculus (e, i.e. approximately equal to 2.71828), and the Euler’s Mascheroni Constant (gamma), also called as “Euler’s constant” (approximately equal to 0.57721).

Earlier in December, Google had honoured another mathematician, Srinivasa Ramanujan on his 125th birthday. The doodle in the memory of this genius was endearing, to say the least and best described what Ramanujan lived for – his love for mathematics. The doodle showed a young lad, believed to be young Ramanujan, on his fours, writing the mathematical constant Pi, which is approximately equal to 3.14159. The word ‘Google’ was thoughtfully etched out of the different formulaes and other mathematical depictions.

India links Golden Triangle by Train

 

At present, the key points of the “Golden Triangle” Delhi, Jaipur and Agra are linked by advanced comfortable trains that run daily along this route. The testing of Shatabdi Express was started in late November. And it has become clear that this is the most advanced train that will carry passengers to their destinationsfaster than before.

At present, passengers spend one hour to travel from Jaipur to Agra, while earlier, they spent 4-5 hours. The train was launched after the reconstruction of the old railroads which have been made wider. The express is air conditioned. The government is planning to replace gradually all long-distance trains with advanced new ones

China Launches World’s Fastest Passenger Train

Raging an exceptional speed capability of 500km (310 miles) per hour,China has successfully launched this Christmas weekend, the fastest speed, so far, as reported by State Media.

The train resembles an ancient Chinese sword and was built by a subsidiary of China South Locomotive & Rolling Stock Corporation Limited (CSR), which is China’s largest rail vehicle maker. “The super-speed train design resembled the design of China’s ancient sword. The bodywork uses plastic materials reinforced with carbon fiber,” Ding Sansan, the company’s Chief Technician, said to the agency. This has contributed to reducing the train’s weight at a considerable rate while increasing its speed level.

China kept postponing its plan of launching high speed train fearing the havoc followed by the deadly collision between two super fast trains killing nearly forty people and injuring 210 passengers in July, 2008. However, after the July incident, most of the Chinese trains made by CSR continued to provide service with reduced speeds.

Significantly known as six-car train for its ultra – high speed, the train has a  tractive driving power of 22,800 kilowatts, compared with 9,600 kilowatts for the CRH380 trains, Chinese electric high-speed train developed by CSR running is currently running for Beijing-Shanghai High-Speed Railway with the world’s fastest speed of 300 km per hour. Ongoing plans are in progress to extend the railway route till Hongkong by 2015.

Shen Zhiyun,a locomotive train expert asserted that the current speed of 500 kmph will serve a useful reference for existing high- speed railway operations. However, the CSR chairman Zhao Xiaogang clarified that in future Chinese trains will not run at this speed levels. He added “We aim to ensure the safety of trains operation.” However, it is not clear when the train would be made accessible for commercial service.

Related articles

• China unveils 500 km/hr high-speed train (examiner.com)
• China unveils new high-speed train prototype amid safety concerns (inquisitr.com)

5 Classic Rail Journeys!

Train journeys may not be the fastest way of getting from one place to another, but it certainly is a more exciting and exhilarating way of getting to your destination. If you love the romance of train travel, you will not deny that there is a certain aura about a train journey! You can take in the beautiful scenery, experience local flavours of places you pass by and relax o the way. If you find travelling by trains irresistible, you will find our classic rail journeys irresistible.

Sit back, relax and enjoy, while we take you through the classic rail journeys of the world.

Palace on Wheels, Rajasthan, India

Take a journey on the “Palace on Wheels” train from Delhi around the colourful state of Rajasthan to experience an imperial trip through this enchanted land of the Maharajas of yesteryears. A lavishly equipped train aesthetically fixed with current amenities, a well stocked bar to have sundowner in, two dining cars to taste delicious meals and immaculate custom-made service to make you feel like royalty. A breathtaking seven day journey that ships you to a grandiose era gone by, a trip on the Palace on Wheels is certain to make you feel like a King for those seven days!

Most of the travelling is done at night and the itinerary covers Jaipur, Jaisalmer, Jodhpur, Ranthambore National Park, Chittorgarh (Chittor), Udaipur, Keoladeo Ghana National Park and Agra.

The Ghan, Australia

When in Australia, catch the elegant Ghan Train from Adelaide right across the Outback passing Alice Springs and into Darwin. The Ghan started in 1877 when the actua

l railway line from Adelaide via Alice Springs to Darwin was laid – in the wrong place. A short form of the Afghan Express, the Ghan is hauled by a red locomotive and is a marathon expedition lasting over 50 hours. The Ghan has 3 cabin classes to choose from- the Red, Gold and Platinum Kangaroo. Experience a sense of history and travel across a landscape so different from anything one has ever seen.

Venice Simplon Orient Express, London to Venice

As the website of the Venice Simplon Orient Express puts it – ‘a journey on the Venice Simplon Orient Express is a

journey into another world’. Luxury proliferates, from the spectacularly fitted dining car (with French silverware, linen-dressed tables and crystal glassware) to the piano-bar car – you’ll need to horde your gowns and tuxedos. Sigh as you teeter around Europe’s most romantic cities: Vienna, Paris, Prague and Istanbul – all of which the Orient charms with its charisma. Your fare includes table d’hote meals; divine morsels from the a la carte menu and 24-hour compartment service are extra.

 

Trans-Siberian, Russia to China

The Golden Eagle Train is arguably an epic one whose service runs from Moscow’s Yaroslavl Station across a third of the globe to the crumbling c

harm of Vladivostok. This spectacular train starts from Moscow navigates the Urals and crosses the Russian steppes, stopping at Yekaterinburg and Irkutsk, shirking the world’s largest fresh water Lake Baikal before taking a deviation into Mongolia. The train rattles yet onwards to Beijing, passing the spectacular Great Wall. The train continues to Vladivostok before returning to Moscow, taking a full two weeks to complete this very interesting itinerary. Whether you take one week or 10, this is an epic trip. It’s a once in lifetime journey and will stay with you long after the trip is over.

 

Lhasa Express, China – Tibet

Get on the Lhasa Express for a captivating train journey to Tibet on the highest railway line in the world. The rail line of the Lhasa Express runs at 13,000 ft above sea level for 80% of the trip from Tibet to Beijing via Xining. The trail goes through jagged peaks, deep valleys and vindictive terrain that you would never have viewed before. The railway line between Lhasa and Xining is one of this century’s supreme engineering achievements, and reaches an altitude of 5,072 meters at its highest point, Tangula Pass, higher than the summit of Mont Blanc.

On the steep climb to Lhasa oxygen is released in the cabins and if you are still a little dizzy personal oxygen canisters are offered. The journey on the Lhasa Express to the Roof of the World is indeed a exclusive and a once in lifetime experience!