World Heritage ‘Baby Sivok’ Gains Eminence at ‘Ghum Festival’

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NFR Restores ‘Baby Sivik’ Vintage Rail Engine

By Raisina Correspondent

New Delhi, December 12: The Ministry of Railways on Thursday said that ‘Baby Sivik’ rail engine has been restored with perfection. The vintage rail engine is now being showcased at the ‘Ghum Winter Festival’.

“Reviving Classics of Rail History! Restored to perfection, century-old ‘Baby Sivok’ steam engine is now added to UNESCO World Heritage site, the Darjeeling Himalayan Railway,” said the Ministry of Railways on Thursday. The Railways has been conserving vintage rail engines.

The Ministry said that ‘Baby Sivok’ has been “unveiled during Ghum Winter Festival”. “It showcases the Railway’s rich legacy for visitors to explore,” added the Ministry. The engine has been named after a railway station in the Teesta valley.

The vintage rail engine has been restored by the Northeast Frontier Railway (NFR). ‘Baby Sivok’ is a steam engine. It had been part of the Darjeeling Railways Corridor in the past.

The engine was decommissioned from the railway service in 1970. ‘Baby Sivok’ has been displayed occasionally for the public views since 1990s.

The NFR unveiled the restored ‘Baby Sivok’ last week in the Ghum Winter Festival. The NFR with fanfare unveiled the steam engine for the people to savour the rail history at display in the festival.

‘Baby Sivok’ was manufactured by Orenstein & Koppel. The steam engine was made in Germany almost 100 years ago. It was deployed in services in the Darjeeling Himalayan Railways. The vintage engine was restored at the Tindharia work station, said an official of the NFR.

The Railways has a number of vintage steam rail engines in services at several locations. The Northern Railways maintains a stock of functional steam engine at the Rail Museum in Chanakyapuri.

Besides, the Kalka-Shimla vintage rail corridor is run on steam engine with vintage pedigree. Rail engine ‘Akbar’ is also run by the Railways to allow the people to savour the past glory of the rail. ‘Akbar’ has been featured in several of the films, including Border starring Sunny Deol.

Darjeeling Himalayan Railways had deployed ‘Baby Sivok’ for carrying construction materials for works undertaken in the Teesta Valley. The steam engine had previously been displayed in Siliguri.

The Railways hopes that tourists will partake in the rail history through ‘Baby Sivok’ and also the engineering prowess of the past. Rail engines in the past were manufactured in Europe and imported to India for operations in private capacities by princely states and the British administration.

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