DHR B Class

DHR B Class

300px No. 792 hauling a school train, 2005

Type and origin Power type Steam Builder Sharp, Stewart & Co. (12) North British Locomotive Co. (16) Baldwin Locomotive Works (3) DHR Tindharia Works (3) Build date 1889–1925 Total produced 34

Specifications Configuration 0-4-0 ST UIC class B n2t Gauge 2 ft (610 mm) Driver diameter 26 in (0.660 m) Axle load 7.75 long tons (7.87 t) Loco weight 14 long tons (14 t) Boiler pressure 140 psi (0.97 MPa) Firegrate area 9 sq ft (0.84 m2) Heating surface 316 sq ft (29.4 m2) Superheater None Cylinders Two, outside Cylinder size 11 in × 14 in (279 mm × 356 mm)

Performance figures Tractive effort 7,750 lbf (34.47 kN)

Career Operators Darjeeling Himalayan Railway → Indian Railways Class B Numbers DHR: 17–30, 32–36, 39–53 All-India: 777–806 Disposition Some still in service

The DHR B Class is a famous class of 2 ft (610 mm) gauge 0-4-0 ST saddle tank steam locomotives used on the Darjeeling Himalayan Railway (DHR) in West Bengal, India.

Service history

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.

Livery

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.

See also

• History of rail transport in India
• Indian Railways
• Locomotives of India
• Rail transport in India

External links

Media related to at Wikimedia Commons