A Journey to Remember

The journey is breathtaking. Travelling by train on a 30 metre high embankment, you shoot through a tunnel more than three km. long, emerge briefly on terra firma, then rust on to a bridge over a deep gorge. In winter, a stream surges below you in summer, the red earth meanders on. Hold your breath for a moment, you are 50 metres above the  ground, but in a few seconds, the train will travel downwards into yet another tunnel, four km. long.

Three minutes later, you are out again, crossing a bridge over 64 metres high, the height of a 15 storeyed building, comparable to the famed Qutab Minar in Delhi. The Panval river below defies description.

High above the rivers, deep inside the mountains ... this is one journey where distinctions blur. Bridges melt into tunnels, tunnels open out into the sky. In picturesque karnataka, you cross the two km. long bridge over the Sharavati and, suddenly, you disappear into rock. The end of the bridge is the beginning of the Honnavar tunnel!

Hurtling past from Mumbai towards Mangalore, looking down into valleys from the viaducts, you feel at one with nature – the landscape carpeted with tropical forests, where sambar roam and leopards arch their backs. Cast an eye upon the miles of lush vegetation – tamarind, bamboo, coconut, betel nut, cashew, jackfruit, and of course the alphonso mango of Ratnagiri. Hear the whisper of history in the mountains; Raigad, where Roha is located, was once the stronghold of the 17^th century Maratha warrior king Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, and every stone has a story to tell. Listen to the music of the rivers- Savitri, Jagbudi. Vashishthi and Shastri among them see the fisherman  cast his lazy line into a stream or a buffalo cool off in the sun.

In Goa 40 beaches dot the coastline, but less than 50 km across are some of the best preserved forests in South East Asia. with waterfalls cascading down the Western Ghats. In Kodagu or Coorg, in Karnataka, coffee plantations stretch for miles on the way to Kerala, the spice Coast of India fragrant with pepper and Cardamom.

Konkan is a thin strip of land about 50 km. at its widest between the Arabian Sea and the Western Ghats or the Sahyadri mountain ranges. Mythology says Lord Parshuram the sixth incarnation of Lord Vishnu created the region. After cleansing the world of evil forces several times, he is said to have come and rested in Konkan, blessing the area with his presence. Little surprise then that the only Lord Parshuram temple in the country is found in Konkan, near Chiplun in Maharashtra.

Its proximity to the Arabian Sea, especially the fact that several major and minor sea ports in peninsular India fall in this region has endowed Konkan with a rich history and cultural heritage. This region was the home to the first organised Indin Navy, set up by the great warrior king Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj. Shivaji saw the strategic importance of the region and the need to have a strong navy to dfend this long coastline from European invaders. He did that by setting up a naval force as well as by building srtong sea forts along the coast. Some of these forts, like Vijaydurg, survive to this day, a testimony to his vision. Further proof of the importance Shivaji attached to Konkan is the fact that the massive Raigad fort, which Shivaji made his capital. Also guarded the trading route between Konkan and the hinterland.

The belt was for a long time the most important marine trading centre of India and has always had strong links with seafarers from the Middle East, Africa and Europe. These trading links have left their mark behind to this day and one finds an amazing  mix of cultures and people here.

Konkan was also the area where Vasco Da Gama landed in 1498 leading a European onslaught that eventually led to the colonisation of India. Incidentally spices especially pepper, so attractive to early European traders grow abundantly in the region. Blessed with fertile soil, and one of the highest rainfalls in the country – an average rainfall of 3500 mm. – the region is rich with natural resources. It also has enormous mineral wealth, especially bauxite and silica sand.

Agriculture and industry flourish side by side in the Konkan, and it is a treasure – trove for tourists too. Now the spectacular and rugged landscape will never be the same again. Konkan Railway has changed it forever.