The Indian Railways WG class was a type of broad gauge 2-8-2 goods locomotive introduced in the 1950s. 2,450 of the class were built between 1950 and 1970.

History and design

The WG design was introduced in 1950; it utilised identical equipment (boiler, motion,

spring Spring(s) may refer to: Common uses * Spring (season) Spring, also known as springtime, is one of the four temperate seasons, succeeding winter and preceding summer. There are various technical definitions of spring, but local usage of ...

s, tender bogies, and rear truck) as used in the 4-6-2 WP class passenger locomotives. The first hundred units (No. 8301 to 8400) were built by North British and subcontractor

Vulcan Foundry The Vulcan Foundry Limited was an English locomotive builder sited at Newton-le-Willows, Lancashire (now Merseyside). History The Vulcan Foundry opened in 1832, as Charles Tayleur and Company to produce girders for bridges, switches, crossin ...

(ten units). Number 8350 was exhibited at the

Festival of Britain The Festival of Britain was a national exhibition and fair that reached millions of visitors throughout the United Kingdom in the summer of 1951. Historian Kenneth O. Morgan says the Festival was a "triumphant success" during which people: ...

in 1951. Locomotives were also sourced from the

Société Franco-Belge The Société Franco-Belge was a Franco-Belgian engineering firm that specialised in the construction of railway vehicles and their components and accessories. The company originated in 1859 as the Belgian firm Compagnie Belge pour la Constructio ...

Raismes Raismes () is a commune in the Nord department in northern France. The flutist Gaston Blanquart (1877–1962) was born in Raismes. Raismes is known for hosting the annual rock music festival Raismes Fest. Population Notable residents * Pier ...

, France, Lokomotivfabrik Floridsdorf in Austria, and from elsewhere in Europe and from Japan. The rolling stock works of

Chittaranjan Locomotive Works Chittaranjan Locomotive Works (CLW) is an electric locomotive manufacturer based in India. The works are located at Chittaranjan in the Asansol Sadar subdivision of West Bengal, with an ancillary unit in Dankuni. The main unit is 32 km fr ...

West Bengal West Bengal (, Bengali: ''Poshchim Bongo'', , abbr. WB) is a state in the eastern portion of India. It is situated along the Bay of Bengal, along with a population of over 91 million inhabitants within an area of . West Bengal is the fou ...

initially manufactured locomotives from imported parts; by 1953, 70% of the locomotives were domestically produced, and by 1956 the works was able to entirely satisfy the domestic production need for WG locomotives. Production ceased in 1970; the final unit being named ''Antim Sitara'' (Last Star).Indian Steam Pages – Post War Steam, IRFC, Building locomotives at Chittaranjan

Preservation

Nine WG's are now preserved in India, WG 9673 is preserved on a pedestal (without its tender) outside Rajendra Nagar Station New Delhi, WG 10253, was plinted at the Zonal Training School Bhusaval, but 2018 removed from the pedestal and sent to Rewari to be restored in working condition, WG 9428 is used at the UP Cement Corporation, WG 9391 is preserved and stored in Burdwan, WG 8258 is preserved on a static pedestal on public display in

Sahibganj Junction railway station Sahibganj Junction railway station is an important railway junction station on Sahibganj loop line under the Malda railway division of Eastern Railway zone. It is situated beside National Highway 80 at Sahebganj in Sahebganj district in the Ind ...

, WG 10527 is stored in a shed in Burdwan, WG 9286 is preserved by Sri Durga Trading Company, WG 8407 "Deshbandhu" became the first WG to be preserved into Indian Railway Heritage, it is stored Pedestal along with WG 10560 "Antim Sitara" at Chittaranjan Locomotive Works.

References

Notes

Bibliography

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External links