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Joshi's Museum of Miniature Railway

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Joshi's Museum of Miniature Railway
Joshi's Museum of Miniature Railway is located in Maharashtra
Joshi's Museum of Miniature Railway
Location within Maharashtra
Established1998 (present building)
LocationErandwane,Pune,Maharashtra,India
Coordinates18°30′06″N73°49′20″E/ 18.50163°N 73.822213°E/18.50163; 73.822213
TypeTransport museum
Websitewww.minirailways.com

Joshi's Museum of Miniature Railwayis a miniature railway museum located in theErandwanelocality ofPune,a city in the state ofMaharashtra,India. The museum hosts working models of various types of trains. It was started by Bhausaheb Joshi.

History[edit]

The museum was conceptualized and started by B. S. Joshi, popularly known as Bhausaheb Joshi.[1]Through his childhood hobby of collecting and making models, he started working on this concept in the 1960s. He initially made mobile working models, which he would set up in various cities for the public to view. His first exhibition took place in Pune at the Gokhale Hall in 1982. In 1984 the layout was displayed inMumbai(then Bombay) and again in 1986, in Pune's Dastur High School. It was then that Joshi decided to have a permanent exhibition to avoid the inconveniences of mobile models. The present layout of the museum was fabricated in 1991 and the museum opened on 1 April 1998.[2]Over time the layout was enlarged with many additions of digital controls and multiple models. The museum's present proprietor is Dr. Ravi Joshi, Bhausaheb's son.

On exhibit[edit]

The model trains on exhibition run through a miniature city and are presented with ason et lumièreshow. The layout includes 65 signals, fences, lamp posts, flyovers, etc. and can be controlled manually as well as through a computer. In 2011 it has working models of "10 - 15" types of trains, including steam engines, thebullet trainand a mini sky-train.[3]

In 2003, the museum developed a miniature railway that interacts with other equipment and simulates train movements. This project, the first of its kind in India, was executed for HBLnife, a company that manufactures and supplies batteries, high-frequency track circuitdata loggers,digital axle countersand electronic interlocking systems to the Indian Railways. The model is the first ever scale model in India that is digitally controlled and cansimulatemovements of trains.[4]

Since 2003, the museum is an India distributor for international brands such asFleischmann,RocoandHornby Railwaysthat make scale models of railways. "Trainz", the hobby centre of the museum intends, according to Ravi Joshi, to popularize train modelling and impart basic knowledge about it. Currently the charges for the individual consist of Rs 90 for an individual, kids below 3 years are not charged.[5]The museum also has its own manufacturing unit. The museum sells miniature railway kits on site and also supplies models to Switzerland, Australia and theIndian Railways.[6]In 2007 it manufactured a scale model of theJungfrau Railway,Europe's highest railway, and received an order for 2000 sets, which will be sold at the stations of the railway. The models are made by theinjection mouldingprocess.[7]

The museum is included in the attractions covered by the Pune Municipal Corporation's one-day city tour bus.[3]The road on which the museum is located has been named after Bhau Joshi.[8]

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^Milind Gunaji(2010).Offbeat Tracks in Maharashtra.Popular Prakashan. p. 236.ISBN978-81-7991-578-3.Retrieved22 May2012.
  2. ^"Joshi's Museum of Miniature Railways: The Only Miniature City In India".Archived fromthe originalon 24 April 2012.Retrieved25 May2012.
  3. ^ab"Joshi museum of Miniature Railways included in Pune Darshan trip".DNA.Mumbai: 2 Diligent Media Corporation Ltd. 20 May 2011.Retrieved22 May2012.
  4. ^"Joshi's Museum Develops Mini-train For Simulations".financialexpress.com.New Delhi: The Indian Express Limited. 20 May 2003.Retrieved22 May2012.
  5. ^"A giant leap towards train modelling".The Times of India.Mumbai. 20 May 2003. Archived fromthe originalon 3 January 2013.Retrieved22 May2012.
  6. ^"Miniature train museum chugs into 11th year".The Times of India.Mumbai. 3 April 2009. Archived fromthe originalon 3 January 2013.Retrieved22 May2012.
  7. ^R. Savitha (24 August 2007)."Joshi's museum of miniature railways".Hindu epaper.Chennai:The Hindu Business Line.Retrieved22 May2012.
  8. ^"Road named after founder of Museum of Miniature Railways".expressindia.com.New Delhi: The Indian Express Limited. 7 July 2008. Archived fromthe originalon 22 January 2013.Retrieved22 May2012.

External links[edit]

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