Twin Alco Tata Allepey Chugging: Chakradharpur-Rourkela, Saranda Forest Monsoon Magic

The 100 kilometres in between Chakradharpur and Rourkela has a large stretch cutting right through the Saranda forests, forming the border of Jharkhand and Odisha. The hills of the Saranda range start giving us company right after Chakradharpur and the dense forests starts after Goilkera. There is a tunnel (not captured in the video), and the tracks swerve past low-lying hills, shrouded by the clouds, and thick forests, lush green after the monsoon rains. The videos are captured on board the 18189 Tata Alleppey Express: a short 12 coach rake which merges with the Dhanbad Alleppey Express at Rourkela in a complex merger operation. Led by Visakhapatnam twin WDM3s, coupled LHF-LHF, ensuring short-hood forward (SHF) operations in either direction, the train huffs and puffs through the forests, leaving behind a trail of smoke. The second part of this two part compilation features the Tata Allepey's progress after Goilkera, through the latter half of the Saranda forest range. The twin diesels put on a fine show with the puny rake, maintaining some high speeds despite the high number of stoppages for the train in this stretch. The highlight of this stretch is the train's parallel progress with the Koel river before Manoharpur. The curves with the river's alignment and the twin diesels celebrate this moment with some serious chugging and smoking. The compilation ends with some intense acceleration of the Tata Allepey Express out of Jaraikela, as the puny rake shoots to the MPS of 110 kmph in a little over 3.5 minutes.