India on Thursday chose to suspend operations of the Indo-Pak Samjhauta Express from March 4, on its side because of the sharp decline in occupancy particularly after the Pulwama terror attack and the suspension of the decade-old train services from across the border. The railway board has decided to cancel all operations from the train’s next scheduled run. The Samjhauta Express runs from New Delhi on Wednesdays and Sundays. From Pakistan side, the train departs from Lahore on Mondays and Thursdays. On 27 February, Wednesday, only 27 passengers had boarded the train. As many as 375 passengers had availed the train service in February. The footfall on the train, which generally records an occupancy of around 70 percent, has fallen radically post the Pulwama attack on February 14 in which 44 CRPF jawans were martyred. No less than 40 travelers from both the nations are believed to be stranded at Attari. Pakistan on Wednesday had canceled the train's trip on the Wagah-Lahore stretch on its side, even as 27 passengers - 23 Indians and three from the neighboring nation - arrived at Attari from Delhi on an Indian rake which left the Old Delhi Railway station at 11.20 pm on Wednesday night.
Initially, the train offered a thorough service with one rake going the whole distance between the terminals - Delhi in India to Lahore in Pakistan. However, now a Pakistani rake stops at Attari station at which point, passengers have to change trains and board an Indian rake. Earlier in the day, a spokesman from the neighboring nation said in a statement the operations of the train had been suspended on Thursday “in view of the prevailing tensions between Pakistan and India.” The biweekly train was scheduled to depart from Lahore with 16 passengers. Samjhauta Express will resume its operations when the security situation improves among India and Pakistan, although the date of next scheduled run is uncertain as of now. The Samjhauta Express, named after the Hindi word for "agreement", involves six sleeper coaches and an AC 3-tier coach. The train service began on July 22, 1976, under the Shimla Agreement that settled the 1971 war between the two countries.
This is all for now. Let’s hope the strain in ties between both the nations resolves eventually and the train gets to run back on the tracks. Did you know Indian railways has it's arms spread on various international borders and is not only restricted within the country, that you could read about in detail. Check what are other border crossing trains around India. Check PNR Status, train seat availability or running status of any train and much more.
Update: The train-Samjhauta Express has resumed its services days after it was suspended. It has restored the services and is running as per its schedule now from both the sides (India and Pakistan).
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