CHENNAI: The Lalbagh Express, once touted as the poor man's Shatabdi, completed 27 years of service on Monday on the Chennai-Bengaluru section -- one of the country's most in-demand routes.
The train which was introduced on July 1st 1992 from Chennai to Bengaluru with a stop at Katpadi covered the 358 km in five hours 15 minutes which is almost as fast as today's Shatabdi Express.
It remained one of the most sought-after trains on the route until the introduction of the Bengaluru-Chennai Shatabdi Express in 2005. Till then, rail passengers from Bengaluru preferred the Lalbagh Express to travel to Chennai as it provided the fastest connectivity at affordable rates. The train was fondly called the morning 'Shatabdi' from Bengaluru.
It enjoyed the distinction of 99.9 per cent punctuality in the first three years - a record which few trains in India ever achieved.
R Subramaniyam, 76, a loco pilot who drove the maiden run of the train from Bengaluru to Chennai on July 2nd 1992, recalled that the train left Bengaluru at 6 am and reached Chennai at 11.10 am. "The train neither reported a delay nor met with any accidents for the first three years," he added.
Interestingly, the introduction of this train remained controversial in the initial years. It was alleged that the train was introduced mainly to facilitate to and fro travel for then Railway Minister C K Jaffer Sharief's daughter from Bengaluru to Katpadi who studied at CMC, Vellore. Sharief was a senior Congress leader from Karnataka. Seat number 1 in the AC Chair Car was said to be reserved for her on most days, even though she was not a regular traveller.
However, a retired railway official denied the rumour and said there were plans to operate a premier train on the Chennai-Bengaluru route in 1990 itself. "It's true that all the top officials were behind the train. But it had over 95 per cent occupancy throughout the journey and benefited travellers in both states," said a retired travel ticket examiner from Jolarpettai.
The train began to lose its sheen after the introduction of the Chennai-Mysuru Shatabdi Express on May 11 1994. The Shatabdi covered the distance in a span of 4 hours 55 minutes. After the Bengaluru-Chennai Shatabdi Express started operating, the number of stops of the Lalbagh Express was stepped up to increase the patronage of the Shatabdi. The train now stops at 11 stations and takes six
hours to cover the distance between Chennai and Bengaluru.
Arun Pandiyan, a railway fan and regular traveller, said, "Apart from end to end passengers, the train was well patronised by passengers from all walks of life at stations en route including Katpadi, Jolarpettai and Arakkonam. Jasmine flowers sold at Broadway are transported by farmers from Sholingur on this train regularly," he added.
Fact file:
* Train service launched on July 1st, 1992 from Chennai to Bengaluru
* The Southern Railway train was transferred to South Western Railway a few years ago
* Train is said to have maintained 99.9 per cent punctuality for the first three years
* The train covered 358 km within five hours 15 minutes.
* It was rumoured that the train was introduced to enable to and fro travel for then Railway Minister C K Jaffer Sharief's daughter from Bengaluru to Katpadi
* Until the launch of Chennai - Mysuru Shatabdi on May 11, 1994, Lalbagh was the fastest train between Chennai and Bengaluru
* After the introduction of Bengaluru - Chennai Shatabdi Express in 2005, the number of stops was increased to 11