Heritage steam locomotive Little Red Horse finds unique place in Mumbai

A nearly-century old steam locomotive - Little Red Horse - a symbol of growth and modernity during the 19th and 20th centuries - has been restored and found a place at the lawns of the Mumbai Central railway station in Mumbai.

The Mumbai-headquartered Western Railway (WR) has redeveloped the heritage lawn at Mumbai Central alongwith the Little Red Horse.

This garden was inaugurated by Kshama Misra, President of Western Railway Women’s Welfare Organization (WRWWO).

Ashok Kumar Misra, General Manager of WR and Niraj Verma, Divisional Railway Manager of Mumbai Central Division were among those present.

According to Sumit Thakur, Chief Public Relations Officer of WR, the garden has been redeveloped by the Engineering Department of WR after completion of the ongoing Metro Rail work.

“Beautiful landscaping and fencing work has been done thereby uplifting the beauty of the garden, including a pedestal for the steam locomotive,” he said.

The Little Red Horse was a pride of the Bombay, Baroda and Central India Railway (BB & CI Railway).

“This steam locomotive is a symbol of development and modernity through the 19th & 20th century. This locomotive was manufactured in 1929 by M/s. Kerr Stuart & Co. in England. It was operated between Dabhoi - Miyagam Line which is considered the oldest Narrow Gauge (NG) Line in Asia and was maintained at Pratapnagar Workshop,” he said.

It was decommissioned after 61 years of service and laid to rest at Mumbai Central Station in the year 1991 on the occasion of the platinum jubilee year of the station. The recent work of restoration of the steam locomotive was undertaken by the Mechanical Department of Western Railway.

“The corroded parts were thoroughly repaired and were beautifully painted to restore its yesteryear glory. To add to its beauty, an artificial steam using a fogging machine and a recorded sound of whistle and chugging has been introduced. All headlights, tail lights and dome lights are provided using fixed power supply, as a part of restoration. In addition to this lawn, the garden at the entrance of Mumbai Central station with Ashoka Emblem has been beautified with glass enclosure replacement and landscaping,” he said.