MR INAUGURATES NEWLY INSTALLED FAÇADE LIGHTING OF RAIL BHAWAN

HON’BLE MINISTER FOR RAILWAYS INAUGURATES NEWLY INSTALLED FAÇADE LIGHTING OF RAIL BHAWAN AND CHAIRMAN, RAILWAY BOARD INAUGURATES A NEW TOY STATION MODEL & MINI STEAM LOCOMOTIVE (HASANG) AT NATIONAL RAIL MUSEUM, NEW DELHI

Marking commemorative events in association with the celebrations o­n the solemn occasion of the country’s Independence Day, Hon’ble Minister for Railways Shri D.V.Sadananda Gowda today(14.08.2014) inaugurated the newly installed Façade Lighting of Rail Bhawan here this evening. Hon’ble Minister of State for Railways, Govt. of India Sri Manoj Sinha was the Guest of Honour o­n the occasion. Chairman Railway Board Shri Arunendra Kumar, General Manager, Northern Railway Shri Pradeep Kumar and senior Railway officers were present o­n the occasion. The Indian Railways also marked an another important event o­n the occasion with the inauguration of a New Toy Station Model & Mini Steam Locomotive (HASANG) at National Rail Museum, Chanakyapuri New Delhi later in the day. Shri Arunendra Kumar Chairman Railway Board inaugurated the new Toy train and the Mini Steam Locomotive.  Senior Railway officers- Shri. Alok Johri (Member Mechanical), Shri V.K. Gupta (Member Engineering), Shri A.K. Mittal (Member Staff), Shri D.P. Pande (Member Traffic), Smt. Rashmi Kapoor (Financial Commissioner), Shri P.C. Gajbhiye (Secretary / Railway Board), Shri Pradeep Kumar (General Manager/ Northern Railway, Shri. A.K. Sachan (Divisional Railway Manager, Delhi), Shri Manu Goel (Executive Director/Heritage), Shri. U.S.Mina (Director, National Rail Museum) were also present o­n the occasion.

The Rail Bhawan donned a dazzling appearance illuminated with the white flood light o­n all the sides. The vintage steam engine located o­n front side was outlined with LED lights. The façade lighting also matches the illumination of the Vayu Sena Bhawan, which is symmetrically opposite to Rail Bhawn o­n Rajpath. The cost of work for facade lighting  for Rail Bhawan is Rs. 27.81 Lacs and the work was completed in two months time.  The lighting was done with Philips Make 2x400 W luminaries, 36 fittings were fixed o­n stub post at 9 mtr. interval for uniform lighting.  The total load of the fittings works out to 29 KW & timers control the working hour (19-21 Hrs daily).  The uniform illumination of 250 Lux o­n the wall of the building is achieved through out.

A-885 Hasang is perhaps the smallest steam locomotive ever used in the Indian sub-continent. The Locomotive was manufactured by M/S W.G. Bagnall, Stafford, U.K. in the year 1897. This was working over 2 ft narrow gauge. This tiny locomotive was considered as “basic” shunter. The original number given to this locomotive was 1508 later o­n it was modified to A-885. The wheel arrangement was originally 0-4-2 ST (Saddle Tank) and later modified as 0-4-0 ST (Saddle Tank). This locomotive was used to shunt wagons in the “Ledo Coal Mines” in Assam and subsequently was donated to this museum by Coal India Limited. National Rail Museum has carried out extensive restoration & repair job by attending the corroded sheet and providing PU paint coating for improving the aesthetic look. A miniature station facade with a station manager o­n duty and the lights effects has been added to improve the overall aesthetic appearance. The New Toy Station Model & Mini Steam Locomotive (HASANG) is a valuable addition to the National Rail Museum’s heritage collection.