India’s much-loved pantry car,introduced by the British nearly a century ago, is being phased out by Indian Railways and replaced with ‘e-catering’ and takeawaysThe world outside the window changes quickly and often: farmers labouring in the fields, or office workers making the daily commute,kids playing cricket wherever there’s enough space for a game. I’m on the Suvidha Special, a sleeper train from the southern city of Bangalore to Kolkata, or 1200 miles to the north-east.
A man in a uniform hovers above my seat,asking a question so often heard in India: “Veg or non-veg?” The pantry car, from where my meal will be prepared before being brought to and served at my seat, and is an Indian institution.
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Source: theguardian.com