Priceless railway artefacts once proudly displayed at the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus (CSMT) heritage gully in Mumbai now lie neglected in mud at an isolated plot in Lonavala. The open-air museum, inaugurated in 2018 on World Heritage Day, featured historic pieces including India’s earliest electric and steam locomotives and rare railway infrastructure.
As part of the CSMT’s transformation into a “world-class” terminal, the heritage gully was dismantled and the artefacts transported to Lonavala. However, the relocation appears to have been poorly planned. Several relics were reportedly damaged in transit and now rest abandoned amidst construction debris at a site designated for a future museum.
Railway enthusiast Devraj Malekar, who recently visited the site, described the condition as “pathetic,” sharing photographs of rusting locomotives and machinery half-buried in mud. “It’s insulting to our railway heritage. Who will visit such a remote place?” he questioned.
The collection includes historically significant pieces such as a 1928 narrow-gauge steam engine from the Barsi Light Railway, the electric locomotive EF/1 “Sir Leslie Wilson”, a WCG-2 DC loco from Mumbai, a 1920 Birmingham-built goods wagon, and a manual fire engine from 1880.
Other standout exhibits include the NDM1 diesel loco (No. 501), built in Germany in 1955 for the Neral–Matheran Hill Railway, and the ZDM4A-class diesel loco (No. 212) from Murtijapur. Both were repainted and restored before being sent to CSMT—only to be left deteriorating.
Despite assurances from Central Railway that the artefacts will be restored scientifically and that work on the Lonavala heritage site will begin soon, rail enthusiasts are urging immediate action. “The legacy of India’s first railway cannot be treated so carelessly,” said one railfan.
Source: Mid-day
