Manoj Javedkar recalls his fond memories and emotional connect with The Deccan Queen – A train that celebrated its 95th birthday in June 2025.
I worked in the Banking sector all my life and commuting was part of my work. With Pune being my home town and most part of work life and Mumbai the financial capital, Deccan Queen played an integral and important part of my life over the years. Both officially and personally. I would have done over 150 plus journeys in a span of 20 years. The 95th birthday celebrations at Pune station was a nostalgic moment for me. Deccan Queen is easily one of the most popular and prestigious trains. I have also made many lifelong friends through this train.
Since its inception in 1930 ( Thane to Pune), Deccan Queen was a major landmark in the history of the Great Indian Peninsula Railway, a fore runner of Central Railway. It had the distinction of being one of the first deluxe trains those days. It had many interesting features which were firsts for any train. It was one of the first trains to have a dining car. It had table services, and the pantry was modern with facilities like microwave oven, deep freezer etc., For official travel, the dining space backed up as a mini meeting space. A three hour journey where a lot of work was done on the train. I remember the excitement we had when the train was fitted with a vistadome in 2021. This was something my children loved. It became a part of our entertaining the close family members on vacation. The Vistadome offered sheer experience during monsoons when the scenery with water gushing everywhere was a wonderful and breathtaking view of the Western Ghats. In 1990 , probably the only time in its 95 years, the train had a derailment of coaches near Khandala.
We celebrated the completion of 95 years at the Pune Railway Station. We were part of the Railway Pravasi Group. The event had a cake- cutting ceremony, a live musical band performance and most importantly facilitating the driver and crew of the train.