This is meant mainly for railfans and rail enthusiasts 😛 . On saturday February 2nd, I had a sudden trip to Ratnagiri through Konkan Railway. Here are my observations at this small but important town, which serves as a major station in KR; as all trains have to compulsorily halt here for a crew change:

1)My 10103 CSMT-MAO Mandovi express, hauled by surprise link Pune WDM3A twins 16013R and 16750R (APU-fitted), reached Ratnagiri (Platform 1) at 14 40; 1 hour 25 mins late (as usual! 😛 ) . An announcement was then made for its counterpart 10104 Mandovi to depart from PF2.

2)The travelator at the station showed the advancement of KR!

3)Aerial view of the station; you can see the departing Mandovi express and all the trees adding to the charm, as well as a huge water tank in the distant right.

4)The simple and neat exit; you can see the display indicating the arrivals, departures and platform numbers as well as the travelator.

5) The freight sidings as well as the somewhat desolate PF3; the poles are evidence of the progress in electrification of KR!  😦

6)The freight shed.

7) An announcement was made for 12052 Madgaon Dadar Jan Shatabdi (my return train) to be delayed by 25 mins.

8) Repeated announcements were made for 12218 Chandigarh Kochuveli Kerala Sampark Kranti to arrive on PF2 instead of PF1. Then, the poor train was further shortchanged as to arrive on PF3! :O

9) A BCNA freight led by KJM WDG4 12637 arrived on the mainline.

10) Another BCNA rake headed by KYN WDG4D 70380 went to the freight shed.

11) 22120 Karmali Mumbai Tejas express arrived on PF2 behind Pune ALCO twins WDM3A 18926R and WDM2 16012R – this seems to have become the regular link! 😉

12)There was a decent crowd for the usually empty Tejas; probably owing to the fact that it was a weekend!!

13)Ramp and FOB connecting PF1 with PFs 2 and 3.

14)12218 KeSK then pulled into PF3 behind GOC WDP4D 40133.

15)Tejas departed at 18 10, 50 mins late. This probably delayed 12052 JS as well.

16)The KeSK departed at 18 13 (23 mins late) with a long and short blast of a pure EMD horn.

17)The sun set as we continued to wait for JS.

18)16345 LTT-TVC Netravati express arrived on PF1 at 18 34 (14 mins late) behind GOC WDP4D 40134. Surprising that KeSK was diverted to PF3, given that Netravati arrived only more than 20 mins after KeSK departed.

19)A lot of crowd by then had gathered for the JS as the darkness set in. It finally arrived on PF2 behind GOC WDP4D 40101. We departed at 18 57, 1 hour 2 mins late.

Technical Abbreviations

• ALCO – American Locomotive Company (and an old class of diesel engines of the 1960s)
• APU – Auxiliary Power Unit (specifically for charging the loco batteries when it is idle)
• EMD – Electro-motive Diesel (and a modern class of diesel engines)
• FOB – Foot Overbridge

Station Codes

• CSMT – Mumbai CST
• MAO – Madgaon
• KJM – Krishnarajapuram (KR Puram)
• KYN – Kalyan
• GOC – Golden Rock (Ponmalai)
• LTT – Lokmanya Tilak Terminus (Kurla Terminus)
• TVC – Trivandrum Central