Deccan Queen during its 80th anniversary celebrations on 1st June 2009.

The Deccan Queen डेक्कन क्वीन or Deccan Queen Express, (translated Dakhkhanchee Raanee दख्खनची राणी in Marathi), is an Indian passenger train that connects Mumbai with Pune. It is a daily means of transport for thousands of passengers travelling between the two cities. It is a prestigious train of the Indian Railways.

Schedule[link]

The Deccan Queen departs daily from Pune at 07:15 IST and reaches Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus (CST), Mumbai at 10:25 IST. It departs from Mumbai at 17:10 IST (5:10 PM IST) and reaches Pune at 20:25 IST (8:20 PM IST). Arrival times are generally delayed by a few minutes. The train number is 12124 (Up) while travelling from Pune to Mumbai, a distance of 192 km, and 12123 (Down) for the return journey.

Stops[link]

Pune to Mumbai[link]

After leaving Pune, the train stops only at Lonavala and Dadar stations before the Mumbai destination. The train also halts for a few minutes at a point named Monkey Hill (just after Lonavala) at the beginning of a steep descent in order to check its brakes. This is known as a "technical halt" and is not a scheduled halt at a station.

Mumbai to Pune[link]

During the journey from Mumbai, the train's first halt is at Karjat to attach banker locomotives at the rear to enable the train to climb the mountainous route. The train then halts at Lonavala after climbing to the top, and then halts at Shivajinagar station near Pune before finally terminating at the main Pune railway station.

History[link]

Deccan Queen was started on June 1, 1930^[1] as a weekend train for the Britishers during the British rule in India, to ferry race-fans from Bombay (now Mumbai) to Poona (now Pune). The first service of the train was conducted from Calyan (now Kalyan) and Pune. It was converted to a daily service soon after, starting from Bombay Victoria Terminus (renamed Mumbai Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus CSTM). It is one of the longest running trains on the Indian Railways to have never run on steam power. From the beginning, the Deccan Queen has been run using electric locomotives. Occasionally, it was given diesel locomotives in case of original locomotive failure.

The color of its rake has seen a lot of changes, from red colour to yellow and then to blue^[1].

Deccan Queen is the second train in India having ISO 9000 certification and a dining car after the India's first ISO Certified train Shaan - E - Bhopal Express running between Bhopal Habibganj (Bhopal) - Hazrat Nizamuddin (Delhi) ^[1]. It has sixteen coaches including the engine.

The Deccan Queen is also one of the most favourite trains among railfans. Every year on 1st June, its regular pass-holders, railfans and railway authorities celebrate the train's birthday. Deccan Queen entered its 82nd year of service on 1st June 2011^[2].

Incidents[link]

The train derailed in 1990 at Khandala Ghat, but there were no casualties.

On 30 November 2006, a mob of around 6000 protestors set fire to some coaches of the train near Ulhasnagar after forcing the passengers to get down^[3]. The arsonists were protesting against the vandalism of a statue of B. R. Ambedkar in far away Kanpur though the incident had nothing to do with the Deccan Queen or even Mumbai or Pune.

References[link]

External links[link]

• Classic Trains of India: Deccan Queen by S. Shankar
• Deccan Queen at India Rail Info

Prem Joshua (Hindi: प्रेम जोशुआ) is a German musician, active since 1991.

Born in Germany, Joshua learned the flute at the age of five and played the flute and the saxophone for various local bands. At the age of 18, he traveled overland to India studying the indigenous folk music of countries along the way.^[1] Joshua was the name his parents gave him, he later added Prem to it, dropping the family name, to remind him of the essence of love (Prem literally means love in Hindi).^[2]

On reaching India, Joshua learned to play the sitar from Ustad Usman Khan and Osho. Osho inspired him and his music.^[3] His website states that "In the presence of this man with a long white beard, eyes as deep as the ocean and a strong sense of humor, he came in touch with the art of the “inner music” - Silence. This was really coming home!"

Throughout his career, he has experimented with various forms of music, creating a blend of the East and the West. He has also worked extensively with other producers, making remixes of his own songs and infusing traditional Hindustani acoustic instruments with lounge and trance beats. His music has immensely contributed to the Asian Underground and fusion scene.

In 1991, Joshua launched his first project, “Terra Incognita”, with Kora player, Ravi, and British Sarod player, Chinmaya Dunster, with which he released two albums. He subsequently released four solo albums and formed the band, “Hamsafar”, with which he released one album. Following this, Joshua began to experiment with genres like drum and bass, lounge, and trance, while still focusing on traditional Hindustani music.^[4]

Band members[link]

Chintan Relenberg — Loops, Keyboards, Darbouka, Tabla, Vocals
Raul Sengupta — Tabla, Percussion, Vocals
Satgyan Fukuda — Bass, Percussion, Vocals
Prem Joshua — Sitar, Flute, Saxophone, Dilruba, Santoor, Vocals
Runa Rizvi — featured vocalist

Discography[link]

• No Goal But The Path - with Terra Incognita, New Earth Records, 1991
• Tribal Gathering - with Terra Incognita, New Earth Records, 1992
• Tales of a Dancing River - New Earth Records, 1993
• Hamsafar - New Earth Records, 1994
• Desert Visions - New Earth Records, 1995
• Secret of the Wind - New Earth Records, 1996
• Mudra - White Swan Records, 1998
• Sky Kisses Earth - White Swan Records, 1999
• Dance of Shakti - White Swan Records, 2001
• Water Down The Ganges - with Manish Vyas, Medial Music, 2001
• Shiva Moon - Prem Joshua Remixed by Maneesh de Moor - Medial Music, 2003
• Dakini Lounge - Prem Joshua Remixed - White Swan Records, 2003
• Yatri - Medial Music, 2004
• Ahir - with Chintan, Medial Music, 2006
• Taranga - White Swan Records, 2006
• Prem Joshua & Band In Concert [LIVE] - White Swan Records, 2009
• Luminous Secrets - Link to Album on Official Website, 2010

Sources[link]

• Prem Joshua - Albums
• White Swan Records - Featured Artists - Prem Joshua
• Allmusic

References[link]

External links[link]

• Prem Joshua - Official Website
• New Earth Records - Official Website
• White Swan Records - Official Website
• Trident Entertainment - Official Website
• Prem Joshua's LastFM Site