Let's travel back in time. When ALCOs and blue ICFs ruled the northern part of our country. A journey which was destined to cancel at every step, but somehow it happened.

The year was 2009, I was used to the monotonous journey behind the Mughalsarai WAM-4s. They were great, but they were silent and like WAP-7s today, abundant. That year we planned a vacation to Jammu and Kashmir. So, when I got a chance to experience a journey behind the classic chugging loco, I was excited.
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The train we were going to take was Archana Express, from MGS to JAT. Tickets booked, bags packed, camera reels reloaded, food was being prepared for the journey. And I contracted chickenpox. So, should we cancel, what if I don't recover by the day of journey? I was isolated and everyone prepared.

Well, I recovered and the journey day came. We headed to Mughalsarai early morning, where rest of the people were going to join us. On our way to station, we read in the newspaper that riots have started in Punjab. Trains are being canceled.

Every train was being announced as canceled, except ours. Enquiry staff had no idea if our train was canceled. So, the elders had a discussion whether to return back home, given the grim situation. Ultimately they decided to wait. Around 2 in the noon, announcement was made that Archana was NOT canceled. Finally the train arrived at 4:30 in the evening, delayed by 6 hours.

There were a lot of new things for me in this train. For the starters, this was the first time I traveled the MGS-BSB section in a train. Then there was the side middle berth, which was allotted to me. And first time traveling in a train when the whole coach seemed like our home, since we were traveling with our family friends.

The train did a nonstop run till Varanasi, halted for a while and proceeded. But this happiness was short lived, the train screeched to a halt at Bhadohi at around 8 in the night and refused to move. We kids even tried pushing the train at the windows, but it didn't help.

We got to know that Himsagar Express was burnt by the rioters in Jalandhar, and it was unsure if our train will go any further. But again lady luck gave a nod and we left Bhadohi after midnight. I went to sleep and when I woke up, we were heading out of Lucknow. Disaster struck again, and this time it wasn't the riots, a couple running away from home jumped in front of another train, and since our train had become a 'dhobi ka kutta', we were made to wait until police formalities were completed. By this time, we were pretty much sure 'Mata ka bulava abhi tak nahi aya hai'.

We did a nonstop crawl till Bareilly and again got looped there. I remember being bathed at the platform by the coach watering pipes. It was an experience in itself which I think only a few people would've experienced. After a not-so-long halt we proceeded and were again halted at Laksar, I remember the place because at that time we misread it as Lashkar. Back then Archana didn't have a pantrycar and our home cooked food reserves were getting low because we had already eaten it because we thought the journey wasn't going to take place. A new day started by the time we crossed Ambala. We were discussing what will happen if we're attacked.

But then came Punjab and the perception we had made of the state due to the riots was soon to change. We were woken somewhere before Sirhind to the smell of delicious food, we got to know local Gurudwaras were serving food. Our train stopped at every station, between stations and everywhere people were so helpful, everyone seemed to be waiting for us to pamper with whatever they had. Even the common people served us with food and cool water. I've never eaten so much in a day till date.

I couldn't believe this was the state we were afraid to travel in. The route was empty, we were pretty much the only train operating. The run was so relaxed that at a point I had gone down to a village to drink water, and the Loco Pilots/Guard waited for me to return even though the signal was green. We reached Jalandhar by night, the burnt rake of Himsagar Express was standing right beside us. It was a surreal experience, like something out of a horror movie. It was a normal journey after that. We reched Jammutawi in the early hours of the next day.

A journey through a riot hit state on the only train running, when it wasn't sure if the train will even complete it's journey. Sitting in a coach not so far behind the loco. The chugging and puffing of an ALCo amid the beautiful farmlands and funky houses of Punjab. The whole coach turning into a big family, laughing, chatting, playing games throughout a 3 days long journey which was supposed to take only a day. The ICF coach motion like feeling even after deboarding. This is a journey I'll always remember. A journey to cherish for a lifetime.

Thankyou for reading.

Kumud.