75th Independence Day: Indian Railways Set To Carry Heritage Run Of 167-Yr-Old Steam Engine

The special 75th year of Independence Day is all set to be celebrated nationwide on August 15 with several campaigns, including 'Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav' and 'Har Ghar Tiranga.' To commemorate the celebrations, the Indian Railways have announced to hold a heritage run of a 167-year-old steam engine, the world's oldest locomotive engine.

The southern railway will hold the special service by EIR-21 between Egmore and Kodambakkam railway stations of Chennai on Monday. The Express EIR-21 was shipped to India originally from England in 1855, reported NDTV.

It retired from its services in 1909, and since then, it's been kept as an exhibit at the Jamalpur workshop in Bihar. It's been more than 100 years since people have seen EIR-21 back on the tracks.

While informing the citizens, the Railways took to Twitter and said, "Please watch this moment when the trial run was organised for EIR-21 on the eve of the special heritage run on 15-08-2022. The beautiful sound of the whistle will send you back to the times of the steam locomotive from the days gone by."

EIR-21 Revamped & Revived

The Perambur Loco Works revived and revamped the engine of EIR-21 in 2010 to meet the requirements of new technology on which railways of the 21st century runs. Now it can attain a 45 Kmph speed, and it's equipped with a hand brake and twin air brake systems. The diesel generator has been installed on the coach for water pump, braking, and train lighting.

The first heritage run of the 167-year-old steam engine was conducted on August 15, 2010, from the central railway station of Chennai to Avadi station with two coaches fitted alongside the machine. This heritage run will again send back people to revisit the memory of traditional steam engine run-railways.

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