Oh! that sound of the 251B prime mover, it is such a fascinating music. Most of my journeys on the Darjeeling Mail while going back home to Newjalpaiguri from my boarding school near Kolkata, was spent looking out of the window in the first class compartment to hear the sound of the WDM2 locomotive from Burdwan Diesel Shed chugging at the head of the train and running through the Sahibgang loop at the booked speed of 90 km/hr. In that pitch dark of the night I waited eagerly for a curve to come so that I could see the mighty diesel with its powerful headlight illuminating the tracks ahead and the cab lights giving the shilloute of the loco crew. Such sights are etched in my memory and I will never forget that. I guess just after the train crossed the Farrakka barrage and went to the northern part of West Bengal it seemed to move at a greater speed and the horn of the great locomotive piercing through the darkness. This lulled me to sleep. My sleep was however broken by the loud horn of the WDM2 as the mail pulled out of Malda Town station. The locomotive now in charge of the folks from Newjalpaiguri and that gave me an assurance that I will be home soon. I still remember the chug-chug-chug soud of the prime mover as the NJP staff accelarated the WDM2 out of Malda Town. Even after so many years many a times at night awake in the bed in my study my mind converts that to a first class berth and I make the chug-chug-chug sound on my own and feeling as if I am being hauled out of Malda town by the great locomotive. With a 2600 HP rating and a 2400 HP to traction WDM2 was the locomotive which heralded the era of heavy frieghts and long distance cross country mail express trains. As electrification takes over I believe it is time for us to celebrate the great locomotive which gave us the Indian Railways that we see today.