The century-old Darjeeling Himalayan Railway (DHR), which draws thousands of toy train enthusiasts to the hills, will introduce three new diesel locos during this upcoming summer tourist season.

Officials of the DHR, a Unesco-recognised world heritage site, have said that the locos are being built at the Northeast Frontier Railway (NFR) workshop at New Bongaigaon in neighbouring Assam.

“The making of three new diesel engines is on the verge of completion. We hope that these new locos will be introduced on the DHR tracks by the end of March this year,” Priyanshu, the director of the DHR, said on Tuesday.

Sources said that this was the first time that diesel locos of the heritage mountain railway had been built at a railway workshop under the NFR zone.

As of now, six diesel and 13 steam locos are operational in the DHR.

These engines haul coaches along the narrow gauge tracks that run between New Jalpaiguri and Darjeeling railway stations.

“All the 13 steam locos are used only for Joy Rides (a return trip between Darjeeling and Ghoom stations), along with four diesel ones. The rest of the diesel engines (two) are used for regular passenger services from New Jalpaiguri to Darjeeling and vice versa,” said a railway official.

He pointed out that during the tourist seasons, particularly in the summer months and during the Durga Puja and Diwali vacations, there is a high demand for toy train tickets.

“We have the coaches but due to the paucity of locos, we can’t run more services. Once these three new engines are commissioned, we can introduce certain additional services so that more and more tourists who come here can enjoy a ride in the toy train,” the official added.

The initiative to build three new diesel locos was taken back in 2023.

“Initially, it was decided that these locos would be manufactured at the DHR’s own workshop in Tindharia (which is located around 30km from Siliguri). But in due course, the project was shifted to New Bongaigaon in the neighbouring state. A sum of ₹15 crore is being spent to make these locos,” the official said.