Kangra Valley Railway

The Kangra Valley Railway runs 164 kilometres on narrow gauge from Pathankot, on the plains of Punjab, to Jogindernagar in the hills of Himachal Pradesh, with the snow wall of the Dhauladhar range alongside for most of the way. It is not a tourist train. Its blue-and-cream coaches are second class only and unreserved, and they carry the valley's students, traders and pilgrims as well as its visitors.

That is why the valley fought for it. In August 2022 a flood brought down the railway bridge over the Chakki river, just outside Pathankot, and the through trains stopped for almost four years. Residents protested; a new bridge was built for about ₹70 crore; and on 2 June 2026 the first train left Pathankot again at five in the morning. On reopening day the train fare to Jogindernagar was about ₹40. The bus cost ₹392.

The line was built in 1926–29 to carry the materials for a hydroelectric station at Jogindernagar, and it still climbs the way its engineers laid it: across a reservoir, through two tunnels, over 993 bridges and up gradients of one in 25, to a summit at Ahju, 1,290 metres up.

The train leaves Pathankot, 384 metres above the sea, behind a ZDM-4A diesel, the class that took over the line when steam ended in 1976. After Dalhousie Road it crosses the Chakki on the new bridge, the one that brought the trains back in 2026, and turns east into Himachal Pradesh at Kandwal. Nurpur Road is the station for Nurpur, the old capital of the Pathania rajas.

Round the reservoir

Beyond Talara the line drops towards the Maharana Pratap Sagar, the lake behind the Pong dam on the Beas. When the dam was built, about 25 kilometres of railway between Jawanwala Shahr and Guler lay in the way of the water: the line was lifted in April 1973 and rebuilt on higher ground along the lake's eastern shore, opening at the end of 1976. The new route crosses the Dehar bridge, and just after the Mehla Khad viaduct the piers of the old line can be seen where the two alignments meet again.

The pilgrim section

At Guler the line turns north up the Banganga, and the Dhauladhar comes into view. Jawalamukhi Road is the station for the flame temple of Jwalamukhi. Then the ground gets harder: the train curves over the Bathu viaduct, above a Hanuman temple in the gorge, and passes through the line's only two tunnels, at Dhundi and Daulatpur, the second 328 metres long. Approaching Kangra you can see Kangra Fort on the opposite cliff, across the gorge.

After Kangra the train crosses the Reond gorge on a steel arch, and from there the snow peaks stay in view. Nagrota was the end of the line from 1942 to 1954, when the track beyond it was lifted and shipped to the Middle East for the war. Past Chamunda Marg, for the Chamunda Devi temple, the train reaches Palampur, in the tea gardens.

To the summit and down

Most trains end at Baijnath Paprola, with its small locomotive shed and reversing triangle. Beyond it the line crosses the Binwa and climbs at one in 25, the steepest on the railway, past the 1204 Baijnath temple to Ahju, 1,290 metres up and the summit of the line. From there it runs down through low hills to Jogindernagar, 1,184 metres, where the Uhl's water drops 546 metres from Barot to the Shanan power house. That power station was the reason for the railway.

The line is still worked with Neale's ball tokens: no train may enter the single-track section ahead until the station's instrument has released a metal ball for its driver to carry.

No train runs the whole line. Two trains a day run between Pathankot and Baijnath Paprola, and one shuttle a day each way covers the last stretch to Jogindernagar. Every train runs daily, and every seat is unreserved.

Pathankot to Baijnath Paprola and Jogindernagar

The shuttle 52473 leaves Baijnath Paprola at 08:00 and reaches Jogindernagar at 09:35, so going uphill the whole way means a night at Baijnath or Palampur.

Jogindernagar and Baijnath Paprola to Pathankot

The shuttle 52472 leaves Jogindernagar at 12:50 and reaches Baijnath Paprola at 14:30.

Downhill, the whole line fits in a day: the 08:00 to Jogindernagar, the 12:50 back, and the 15:40 to Pathankot.

Short workings

A third pair runs between Baijnath Paprola and Jawalamukhi Road: 52464 at 10:00, reaching Kangra at 12:36 and Jawalamukhi Road at 13:30, and 52469 back at 14:20, reaching Baijnath Paprola at 17:30.

The monsoon

Rain and landslides have closed the line in recent summers. After reopening in June 2026, services were suspended for the monsoon and restored on 11 October 2026, once the bridges and track had been inspected.

Times are from the station tables of ConfirmTkt, an IRCTC partner, checked against the train numbers and departure times Northern Railway gave for the October restart — as of October 2026. Check the day's train on ConfirmTkt (opens in a new tab) or at the station before travelling.

Every train on the line is second class and unreserved. There is no booking ahead and no online sale: IRCTC does not list these trains. Buy the ticket at the station counter before the train leaves, and take any free seat.

The fare is small. On reopening day in June 2026 the train fare to Jogindernagar was reported at about ₹40, against ₹392 for the same trip by bus. With no seat to reserve, the thing to plan around is the timetable: two trains a day from Pathankot, and one shuttle a day to Jogindernagar.

No rail pass covers the Kangra Valley Railway. Interrail and Eurail are European schemes, and India is not among the countries in Interrail's list of covered railway companies. Indian Railways' own pass for foreign visitors, the Indrail Pass, was withdrawn by Railway Board order on 19 September 2017.

A pass would be no use here anyway. The trains are unreserved and the whole line costs a few dozen rupees, so buy each ticket at the station.

Checked October 2026 against Interrail's list of railway companies (opens in a new tab) and the Indrail Pass (opens in a new tab).

The line passes a string of forts and temples, most of them a short ride by taxi or bus from a station. Kangra and Baijnath Paprola are the easiest bases, and Baijnath's temple is close to its own halt.

Riding the whole line uphill means a night near the top, because the Jogindernagar shuttle leaves Baijnath Paprola before the morning trains from Pathankot arrive. Palampur and Baijnath are the places to stay.

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