Samjhauta Express derails, no injuries

Lahore, Jun 24: The engine of the Samjhauta Express derailed following a problem on the railway tracks near Mughalpura, Lahore. However, no passenger was injured in the incident. Pakistan Railway (PR) staff repaired the tracks and the train completed its passage to India, reported the Daily Times.

Commonly called the 'Friendship Express', the Samjhauta Express is a twice-weekly train - Tuesdays and Fridays - running between Delhi and Attari in India and Wagah and Lahore in Pakistan. Until the reopening of the Thar Express, this was the only rail connection between the two countries. The train was started on July 22, 1976 following the Shimla Agreement and ran between Amritsar and Lahore, a distance of about 42 km. But, following disturbances in Punjab in late 1980s, due to security reasons Indian Railways decided to terminate the service at Attari, where customs and immigration clearances take place.

On April 14, 2000, in an agreement between Indian Railways and Pakistan Railways (PR), the distance was revised to cover just under three-km. As per the agreement which was signed at the Wagah Road checkpost, the Samjhauta Express comprising rakes of Indian Railways would run between Attari and the Wagah Railway Station which is on the other side of the border, a distance of less than three kms. The train would return to Attari from Wagah in the evening on the same day.

ANI