Jabalpur Howrah FULL JOURNEY | Shaktipunj Express FEAT. Forests & Coalfields of Eastern India

A Complete Journey from #Jabalpur to #Howrah on-board the #ShaktipunjExpress featuring some of the major coalfields and forested regions of #EasternIndia. This journey is set on the eve of India's 69th #RepublicDay.

Unlike its other alternative, the #Mumbai #Howrah #ImperialMail, the Shaktipunj Express takes a rather interesting route through #Katni, #Singrauli and #Chopan leading up to #GarhwaRoad, #Daltonganj, #Latehar, #Tori and #Barkakana finally joining the #NewDelhi Howrah Grand Chord at #Gomoh. Thereafter it follows the usual #Dhanbad - #Asansol - #Barddhaman route to Howrah.

This route passes through one of India's most important coal mining regions as well as the (in)famous forests along south-western Jharkhand. The #BetlaNationalPark, a part of the #Palamau Tiger Reserve, falls along this route.

This compilation depicts the departure of our train from Jabalpur at midnight but essentially kicks off next morning at #Bargawan. At sunrise, we are held up for two crossings; a freight train led by twin WDG-4s and the Kolkata Madar Express led by a #AbuRoad diesel. At #Singrauli, 19 kms from Bargawan, we meet our counterpart to Jabalpur led by a #Patratu diesel, just like us. Singrauli, emerging fast as India’s energy capital, is a major coal mining site and home to many major industries.No doubt, there are lumps and hills of coal all around and freight trains getting loaded around the tracks.

The landscape continues this way all the way to #Chopan, marked also by a small ghat section and the crossing of River Son glinting blue in the morning sunshine. The #Obra Dam is also seen across River Son. At Chopan, we have a link "upgrade" as our Patratu WDM-3A gives way to a Patratu WDP-4D and also reverse direction heading south-east towards #Garhwa.

Coal mining fields keep giving company but we are also joined by green forests all around, probably an extension of the #KaimurRange of the #Sonebhadra District. #Renukoot or #Renukut, as the Railways call it, serves a border as the forests and the coal mines disappear giving way to barren and semi-cultivated lands marked by uneven hillocks and rocky surfaces. This continues all the way to #GarhwaRoad where we join the bilateral and electrified tracks from #SonNagar. The crossings of River North Koel and River Kanhar en-route seem to be the lone sources of water.

Post #GarhwaRoad towards #Daltonganj , we start to encounter drastic changes in landscape as we make surges towards the #PalamauWildlifeSanctuary. The North Koel river keeps giving us company, even coming up right adjacent to the tracks at one point. We also encounter crossings of River Sadabah, River Amanat and River Auranga all of which are tributaries of North Koel.

A picturesque curve at the backdrop of a hill brings us to #Barwadih, some 8 km to the Betla National Park. There's no stopping the forests though, as we head towards #Latehar, through the #LateharRange. The run to #Tori from #Latehar takes us through a ghat section formed partly by the Latehar Range and the fringes of the Hazaribagh Range.

At Tori, I enjoy some tasty samosas from a local shop while relishing the sun dipping down the horizons set by the faraway hills. We keep moving steadily towards #Barkakana while encountering another region of coal mining around #McCluskieganj and #Khalari in the dipping light.

This rather long video rounds up with our train departing #Gomoh at the last hour of the night and skipping #Dankuni very early next morning, only to enter #Howrah at 4:45 am, delayed by some 30 minutes.

Another major attraction from this journey is the spotting of diesel locomotives from various sheds across India in their respective liveries. Features diesels from Abu Road, Gonda, Patratu, Lucknow, Ludhiana and Katni. Crossings are few and include the Kolkata Madar Express, the Patna Singrauli Link Express, the Jabaplur bound Shaktipunj Express, the Triveni Express, the Triveni Link Express from Barwadih and a few passenger trains.

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