A total of 34 B Class locomotives have served on the DHR. Some are still on the working roster. One, no. 778, was sold for private preservation, and four others were sold to Coal India, Assam. The remaining class members have been either plinthed in various locations in northern India, or scrapped. Of the few in active service, the locomotives 788 'Tusker' and 'Victor' haul trains between Darjeeling to Ghum stations via Batasia loop, quite a few times a day. [2] Another loco, DHR 780 is kept preserved with two narrow gauge coaches at Eco Park, Rajarhat, as an exhibit.
19B was re-imported into the UK and underwent restoration around the year 2000 before spending two decades operating at the Beeches Light Railway.[4]
Preserved DHR 780 with 2 coachesThe front look of the preserved DHR B Class - showing the saddle tank
Initially, all members of the class were liveried in DHR green. For a short period at the end of World War II, they were repainted black. Later, they ran in an unlined red colour. Since coming under the control of the Northeast Frontier Railway in 1958, they have been painted Caledonian blue with white lining.[5][6]
Manning, Peter (2013). The Anatomy of the Darjeeling Garratt and the Engine it tried to Replace: the DHR Class "B" saddle tank. Coromandel Valley, South Australia: Peter Manning Design & Drafting. ISBN9780980621228.
Marshall, Lawrence G (2001). Indian Narrow Gauge Steam Remembered. East Harling, Norfolk: Plateway Press. ISBN1871980488.
Media related to DHR B Class at Wikimedia Commons
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