Exploring Indian railways

the long version

This very entertaining personal account of the Indian railways focuses on the experience of the passenger and is packed with lively anecdotes. But it goes much beyond that, taking in every imaginable aspect of the railways' history and current practices. Little escapes the author's fond, acerbic, and searching eye, as it ranges from station bookshops and ministry bureaucracy to locomotive types and tracks, from the technical aspects of railway administration to the broader issues of the effects of the railways upon Indian culture and their vital contribution to the economy.