Samjhauta Express was born after Shimla Accord

New Delhi, Feb 19 (UNI) The Samjhauta Express, started on July 22, 1976 following the Shimla Agreement, is a bi-weekly train that runs between Delhi and Attari in India and Wagah and Lahore in Pakistan.

The train ran 42 km between Amritsar and Lahore after its launch but due to disturbances in Punjab in the late eighties the Railways decided to terminate the service at Attari.

On April 14, 2000 the distance was revised to cover just under three km, possibly the shortest route covered by any train in the world, following an agreement between Indian Railways and Pakistan Railways (PR).

It was a daily train when the service started, and changed to a bi-weekly schedule in 1994.

Earlier, the rakes were returned to the home country the same day but later in 2000 the rake remained overnight at that location.

The border crossing takes place between Wagah in Pakistan and Attari in India.

Originally, this was a through service with the same rake going all the way between the termini; later the Pakistani rake stopped at Attari at which point passengers had to change trains.

The train service was set up with an agreement between Indian Railways and Pakistan Railways to alternately use an Indian and a Pakistani rake and locomotive for the train, six months at a time.

The train usually has between four and eight coaches. The rake supplied by Pakistan is generally hauled by an Alco DL-543 class ALU20 diesel loco (Lahore shed).

Passengers who alight at Wagah station are taken to Lahore on a train of the Pakistan railways. The Samjhauta Express returns with India-bound passengers who then board the train to New Delhi from Attari.

The train's first break of service was when it was discontinued on January 1, 2002 in the wake of terrorist attack on Parliament on December 13, 2001.

Service resumed on January 15, 2004.

This was the only rail connection between the two countries until the reopening of the Thar Express.

UNI