Nepal's lost railway line

(vero;2016-March-15)

As I am writing these lines, I have just read that Nepal's railway line, which used to run from the town of Janakpur to the Indian border has been closed and dismantled in 2014. It is to be replaced by a new broad gauge railway, courtesy of the Indian government and Indian Rail. This is surely a good move, as the old line maintained by Nepal Rail was really on the verge of collapsing.

We travelled with this local train twice: in 2008 and then during this trip, both journeys were unforgettable. It took the train one and a half hour to reach Kajuri, the last station open to foreigners before the border, 21 km from Janakpur. The train was crowded, we travelled the first leg inside the carriage, standing, a great opportunity for people watching and we had much time to scrutinise the state of decay of the wagons: holes in the floor where one could see the tracks beneath, holes in the roof, rickety seats. Since this was less than comfortable, we decided to join most other fellow passengers on the roof for the return leg. This was perfect, at last we could see the landscape, and it was a great sensation, watching the world slowly go by under the sun and feeling the breeze.

Watch our video for a full experience of the trip or simply leaf through our photo gallery below.

Watch our video for a full experience of the trip:

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$updated from: Photos.htxt Mon 04 Mar 2024 16:04:43 trvl2 (By Vero and Thomas Lauer)$